/807. 


HUNTING  ADVENTURES  ON  LAND  AND  SEA 


THE  YOUNG  NIMEODS 

IN 

NORTH  AMERICA 


Book  for  Bog0 


BY 

THOMAS    W.  KNOX      . 

AUTHOR  OF  "THE  BOY  TRAVELLERS  IN  THE  FAR  EAST:  JAPAN  AND  CHINA' 
"THE  BOY  TRAVELLERS  IN  THE  FAR  EAST:  SIAM  AND  JAVA"  &c. 


COPIOUSLY  ILLUSTRATED 


NEW    YORK 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  FRANKLIN  SQUARE 

1881 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1881,  by 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS, 
.In  the   Office   of  the   Librarian   of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


All  rights  reserved. 


PREFACE. 


TN  preparing  this  volume  for  the  press  the  author  of  "  The  Young 
-*-  Nimrods"  has  endeavored  to  instruct  the  boys  of  America  in  the 
ways  of  the  hunter's  life.  He  has  made  use  of  his  own  experience  among 
the  wild  animals  of  our  forests  and  plains,  and  has  also  drawn  freely  from 
the  accounts  of  others.  He  has  sought  to  amuse  as  well  as  to  instruct, 
and  hopes  that  the  favor  that  has  been  extended  to  his  work  in  other 
directions  will  be  accorded  to  the  present  effort. 

A  fair  amount  of  natural  history  has  been  interwoven  with  the  stories 
of  hunting  and  fishing;  ft  has  been  the  writer's  aim  to  convey  informa- 
tion in  such  form  that  it  would  not  be  open  to  the  charge  of  dulness  and 
prolixity,  and  to  this  end  the  dialogue  form  has  been  freely  introduced. 
How  far  he  has  succeeded  in  this  endeavor  he  leaves  the  reader  to  de- 
termine. 

The  illustrations  have  been  taken  from  previous  publications  of  Har- 
per &  Brothers,  but  in  all  instances  they  have  been  carefully  chosen  with 
a  view  to  the  correct  representation  of  the  objects  described.  The  au- 
thor is  specially  indebted  to  General  Marcy's  "Army  Life  on  the  Bor- 
der," both  for  illustrations  and  for  descriptions  of  certain  phases  of  fron- 
tier life  which  that  veteran  officer  has  so  graphically  delineated.  He  is 
also  under  obligations  to  Mr.  Murphy's  "Sporting  Adventures  in  the  Far 
West,"  and  to  the  accounts  of  life  in  the  buffalo  land  by  Mr.  Theodore  E. 
Davis. 

Above  all,  he  has  sought  to  produce  a  volume  that  should  be  unex- 
ceptionable in  point  of  morals,  and  may  be  freely  placed  in  the  hands  of 
youth  all  over  the  land.  All  the  adventures  of  George,  and  Harry  are 

2051389 


6  PREFACE. 

quite  within  the  range  of  easy  probability,  and,  wherever  fiction  has  been 
introduced,  it  is  made  so  clearly  fictitious  that  its  character  can  hardly  be 
misunderstood. 

With  this  brief  explanation  the  author  delivers  "  The  Young  Nim- 
rods"  to  the  care  of  the  friends  and  school-mates  of  those  youths,  and 
hopes  they  will  form  a  pleasant  acquaintance. 

T.  W.  K. 

NEW  YORK,  March,  1881. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I.  PAGB 

INCIDENTS   OF   A    TRAPPER'S    LIFE. — FIRST    HUNTING   ADVENTURES    OF    THE   YOUNG 

NIMRODS 13 

CHAPTER  II. 
JOE  FOWLER'S  GREAT  BEAR-HUNT. — ADVENTURE  WITH  A  GRIZZLY  IN  CALIFORNIA 23 

CHAPTER   III. 
VISITING  THE  TRAPS. — THE  HUDSON'S  BAY  FUR  COMPANY 40 

CHAPTER  IV. 
A  FOX-HUNT 52 

CHAPTER   V. 
THE  COUNTRY  STORE. — A  TRIP  TO  THE  MOUNTAINS G4 

CHAPTER  VI. 
THE  BOYS'  FIRST  BEAR-HUNT....  .     76 


CHAPTER   VII. 

SNOW-SHOES. — MOOSE    AND    ELK    HUNTING 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
RETURN  TO  THE  RIVER. — LIFE  AMONG  THE  LOGGERS 102 

CHAPTER  IX. 
SCENES  IN  A  LOGGING  CAMP. — CHARLEY  AND  THE  CATAMOUNT 117 

CHAPTER  X. 
A  YACHTING  EXPERIENCE.— FROM  NEW  YORK  TO  GREAT  SOUTH  BAY 128 

CHAPTER   XI. 
FISHING  INCIDENTS  IN  GREAT  SOUTH  BAY. — CATCHING  A  SHARK 140 


8  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XII.  PAGE 

AMONG  THE  BLUE-FISH.— THROUGH  LONG  ISLAND  SOUND 151 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
AMONG  THE  ADIRONDACK^. — A  DAY'S  TROUT-FISHING 163 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
INCIDENTS  OF  DEER-HUNTING 176 

CHAPTER  XV. 
OFF  FOR  THE  WEST.— INDIAN  VILLAGES  AND  DOG  TOWNS  ON  THE  PLAINS 188 

CHAPTER   XVI. 
INCIDENTS  OF  THE  MARCH. — ARRIVAL  AT  THE  HUNTING-GROUNDS ...  201 


CHAPTER  XVII. 
A  DAY  OF  BUFFALO-HUNTING 212 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
MORE  BUFFALO-HUNTING.— ENCOUNTER  WITH  INDIANS 222 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
A  FIGHT  WITH  THE  SAVAGES. — INDIAN  HABITS  AND  CUSTOMS 232 

CHAPTER   XX. 
A  CHANGE  OF  CAMP. — MORE  HUNTING  AND  MORE  INDIANS 242 

CHAPTER  XXI. 
LEAVING  THE  BUFFALO-LAND. — ANTELOPE-HUNTING 253 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
OVERLAND  TO  SAN  FRANCISCO.— VISIT  TO  THE  FARALLON  ISLANDS 263 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
A  VOYAGE  TO  THE  NORTH  PACIFIC. — HUNTING  THE  FUR  SEAL 274 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 
AMONG  THE  WHALES. — INCIDENTS  OF  WHALE-FISHING 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Rival  Mouarchs Frontispiece 


Joe  Fowler  Visiting  his  Traps 

The  House  by  tlie  River 

Flying-squirrel 

G ray  Sq ui rrel 

"What  will  lie  do  with  It?" 

The  Rabbit 

"Whoo!"     [From  a  Painting  by  William 

H.  Beard.] .' 

California  Rabbit 

Providing  for  his  Family 

A  Dancing  party  in  the  Woods 

Tige  and  Jack  Discover  the  Game 

In  the  Bear's  Embrace 

The  Deadly  Blow 

Exploring  the  Den 

Joe's  Prizes 

John  and  His  Pets 

The  Boy  and  the  Cubs 

Young  Grizzlies  at  Play 

A  Pair  of  Grizzlies 

Camping  in  Southern  California 

"A  Grizzly  in  Camp!" 

The  Judge's  Effort 

The  Doctor's  Escape 

"Gway  fura  Here" 

The  General's  Dive 

The  Real  Grizzly 

The  Home  of  the  Mink 

A  Pair  of  Musk-rats 

The  Ermine 

Hudson's  Bay  Company's  Agent 

Fur-traders  One  Hundred  Years  Ago 

Arrival  of  Indian  Hunters 

Trade-room  in  Business  Hours 

Reading  the  News 

The  Great  Northern  Packet 


Making  a  Portage 50 

A  Rabbit  Warren 51 

Reynard's  Portrait 53 


The  Fox  and  his  Family 54 

Fox-hounds  at  Home 55 

Meeting  for  a  Fox-hunt 5(5 

In  Full  Chase 57 

"  Taking  the  Fence" 58 

Bad  Riding 59 

"In  at  the  Death" (51 

Foxes  on  the  Sea-shore 62 

The  Fox  Family  Abroad 63 

Breakfast  at  the  Corn-crib G5 

The  Country  Store (56 

The  Rural  Clerk 67 

Doctor  Brown 67 

The  Judge 68 

"Hain't  She  Busted  Yet?" 69 

Joe's  Mountain  Friend 70 

A  Question  of  Dinner 71 

Scraping  the  Kettle 72 

Jack's  Room 73 

Bill  as  Out-door  Cook 74 

Fanny  in  the  Kitchen 75 

Climbing  the  Mountain 7(5 

Cooking  the  Rabbits 77 

The  Bears' Ball-room 78 

Rowzey's  Patent  Balance 80 

A  Narrow  Escape 81 

Smoking  a  Bear  out  of  a  Tree 82 

"I  Bring  my  Game  in  Alive:" 84 

A  Spring-gun 85 

The  Strangers „.., 86 

Sam  Brown's  Bear- fight 87 

A  Snow-shoe 88. 

A  Hunter  Pursuing  a  Moose 89 


10 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


The  Moose 

A  Moonlight  Tramp 

Moose-hunting  in  the  North-west. 
Jack's  Friend,  the  Hunter 


PAOE 

..  90 
.  91 
.  92 
.  93 


95 
96 
97 
99 
100 


Examining  Tracks  .......  ........................     94 

Shooting  on  the  Run 

An  Indian  Corral 

The  "Buck-ague" 

The  American  Elk 

Camp  of  Indian  Elk-hunters 

Joe's  Messenger  ...................................  102 

"Breakfast  is  Ready  I"  ..........................  103 

"Please  Pass  the  Pickles"  .....................  104 

Summer  Landscape  in  Maine  ..................  105 

Lumbermen  Prospecting  ........................  106 

A  Chopper  at  Work  ...........  .  ..................  107 

Winter  Dwelling  of  a  Crew  of  Loggers  ......  108 

Hauling  Logs  to  the  River  .....................  109 

Unloading  the  Sleds  .............................   110 

Preparing  for  the  Drive  .........................  Ill 

Drivers  on  the  River  ...........  '  ..................  112 

Stopping  for  Dinner  ..............................    113 

Breaking  a  Jam  ......................  .............  114 

Shipping  Lumber  .................................   115 

The  Last  Man  in  the  Season's  Drive  .........  116 

Evening  in  Camp  .................................   118 

The  End  of  the  Season  ..........................  119 

Lumbermen  at  Work  ...........................   120 

Loading  Logs  ......................................  121 

One  of  the  Loggers  ....................  .  ..........  122 

The  Champion  Story-teller  .....................  123 

Portrait  of  the  Coming  Man  ...................  124 

A  Yachtsman  at  Home  .............  .  ............  128 

"A  Man  Overboard!"  ..........................  130 

The  Steward  .......................................  132 

Sandy  Hook  ........................................  132 

A  Pleasure  Party  on  the  Water  ...............   133 

Fire  Island  Pasture  ...........................  ....  134 

Enterprise  ..........................................   135 

An  Ancient  Inhabitant  ..........................  136 

On  the  Beach  ......................................  137 

Summer  Scene  near  South  Bay  ................  138 

The  First  Olympic  ................................  139 

Taking  it  Easy  ....................................  140 

An  Olympian  Amusement  ......................  141 

The  Cat-boat  .......................................  143 

Clamming  in  Great  South  Bay  ................   145 

Catching  a  Shark  .................................  146 


Shark-fishing  on  the  Florida  Coast 

Fish  from  the  Bay 

A  Queer  Fish 

The  Porgy 

Mouth  of  a  South  Bay  Creek 

Scene  in  Great  South  Bay 

The  Blue-fish 

Among  the  Blue-fish 

A  Sad  Memento 

A  Life-saving  Station 

A  Dog  to  the  Rescue 

Not  a  Hammer-fish 

A  Bunker-boat  near  Montauk  Point.... 

Sunset  on  Long  Island  Sound 

"How  de  do,  Doctor?" 

Punkies  About 

A  Smudge 

The  Travellers'  Home.... 


A  Claim  Cabin 

The  Water-works 

The  Doctor  Getting  Ready 

The  Good  Road 

The  M ile-stone 

Maggie's  Lake 

Jim  and  the  Boat 

Oars  and  Paddles  at  Starting.... 

Gun  and  Boots  at  Starting 

Oars  and  Paddles  on  the  Way.. . 

Gun  and  Boots  on  Arrival 

Hotel  in  the  Backwoods 


PACK 

.  147 
.  148 
.  148 
.  149 
.  150 
.  151 
.  152 
.  153 
.  156 
.  157 
.  158 
.  159 
.  161 
.  162 
.  164 
.  165 
.  165 
.  166 
.  166 
.  167 
.  168 
.  169 
.  169 
70 
70 
71 
71 


The  Kitchen 

The  Dining-saloon 

A  Camp  in  the  Adirondacks 

View  on  Cry stal  Lake 

Deer  at  Home 

The  Doctor's  Deer 

George's  Fish 

The  Judge  Going  to  the  Adirond 
The  Judge  after  a  Month  in  th 

dacks 

The  Professor 

Jake  and  the  Beer 

The  Deer  Swimming  the  Lake... 

Passage  between  the  Lakes 

The  Rush  for  the  Wilderness 

Westward  by  Rail 

An  Indian  Village 

Indian  Pony  in  Spring 


icks.. 
3  Adi 


73 
174 
174 
175 
177 
178 
179 
180 
181 

182 
183 
184 
185 
187 
188 
189 
192 
19:5 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


11 


L'OO 
202 


PAOE 

Indian  Pony  in  Autumn 193 

An  Indian  Village  Moving 194 

Preparing  Buffalo-robes 195 

An  Indian  Grave 196 

"Unknown" 197 

Rattlesnake  Village 198 

A  Prairie-dog  Town 199 

Camp  Scene  at  Night 

Effects  of  a  Sudden  Flood 

Gathering  Buffalo-chips 203 

A  Sunset  Supper 204 

The  Stampede 205 

The  White  Man's  Friends 206 

Badly  Scared 208 

Unconditional  Surrender 209 

A  Dug-out  on  the  Plains 210 

Ready  for  the  Hunt 211 

Their  First  Buffalo-hunt 212 

Buffalo  Cow  and  Calf. 213 

Breaking  the  Herd 214 

Driving  Buffaloes  over  a  Cliff' 216 

The  Track  of  a  Hunt 217 

The  Captain  and  his  Buffalo 218 

View  from  the  Ridge 220 

Vulture  in  a  Mirage 221 

Camp  of  Buffalo-hunters 222 

The  Telegraph  Pioneer 223 

An  Attack  of  Nightmare 225 

An  Indian  Head 227 

Kiowa  Indians  chasing  Buffaloes 228 

Indians  killing  Buffaloes  in  the  Snow 229 

"How-how!" 230 

The  Scalp-lock 231 

A  Fight  with  the  Indians 233 

The  Camp  at  Monument  Rocks 234 

A  Corral  on  the  Red  River  of  the  North....  235 

Prairie-schooner  and  Bullwhacker 237 

The  Indians' Victim 238 

The  Counting  Coup 240 

The  Wolf-dance  of  the  Tonkawas 241 

Moving  into  the  New  Camp 242 


Soap-weed 

A  Herd  among  the  Breaks 

"  Fire-water  " 

Traders  at  an  Indian  Village 

Pressing  Robes  into  Bales 

An  Indian  Village  in  Winter 

A  Cheap  Fire 

A  Mirage  on  the  Plains 

Their  Canvas  House 

Post  Lodgings 

Stampede  of  Horses  and  Mules  in  a  Storm, 

"Billy" 

A  Herd  of  Antelopes 

Calling  Antelopes 

A  Part  of  Denver 

Alkali  Desert,  Central  Pacific  Railway 

Sea-birds  on  the  Farallon  Islands 

Nest  of  a  Gull 

Bird  egging  under  Difficulties 

Sea-lions  on  the  Farallon  Islands 

Light-house  on  the  Farallon  Islands 

Sitka,  or  New  Archangel,  Capital  of  Alaska 

A  Seal  Family  at  Home 

Fight  between  Two  Seals 

Starting    the    Drive    from    the    Hauling 

grounds 

Driving  Seals  Overland 


Fur-seal  Rookery  on  St.  Paul's  Island 

Bulls  Quarrelling 

Killing  Fur-seals 

Skinning  a  Seal 

The  Skin  after  Removal 

Coast  of  Alaska  near  St.  Paul's  Island , 

In  a  School  of  Whales 

A  Whaleman  and  his  Implements 

The  Young  Harpooner 

Smashing  the  Boat 

The  Whale  in  Tow 

"Cutting  in"  a  Whale 

Trying  out 

Carcass  of  a  Whale 


PAOB 

243 
245 
246 
247 
248 
250 
251 
254 
255 
250 
257 
258 
260 
261 
264 
265 
267 
268 
269 
272 
273 
275 
277 
279 


281 
282 
283 
285 
286 
286 
287 
289 
290 
291 
293 
294 
295 
297 
298 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INCIDENTS   OF  A  TRAPPER'S  LIFE.— EJRST  HUNTING  ADVENTURES  OF  THE 
YOUNG   NIMRODS. 

"  rplIAT'S  a  good  morning's  work,"  said  Joe  Fowler,  as  he  threw  his 
-*-  burden  on  the  floor. 

"A  very  good  one  indeed,"  replied  his  cousin  Edward;  "better  than 
yesterday,  when  you  had  nothing  at  all." 

"  So  it  goes  in  hunting  and  trapping,"  Joe  responded.  "  You  must 
never  count  your  game  before  you  have  it,  or  you  will  run  a  great  risk  of 
being  disappointed." 

So  saying,  he  ranged  his  prizes  side  by  side  on  the  floor,  and  examined 
them  critically.  Two  foxes,  three  minks,  and  a  pair  of  musk-rats  were 
the  proceeds  of  the  day's  expedition.  All  the  skins  were  of  the  best 
quality,  and  as  Joe  stroked  the  fur  on  each  before  laying  it  aside  he  gave 
a  nod  of  approval. 

"  Good  pelts,  every  one,"  he  remarked,  as  he  rose  and  straightened 
himself.  "And  now  to  take  them  off." 

Suiting  the  action  to  the  word,  he  gathered  the  game  together  and 
went  out-of-doors,  followed  by  Edward.  Evidently  he  was  a  skilful  hand 
at  removing  the  skins  of  fur-bearing  animals,  as  he  was  through  with  his 
work  in  a  short  time.  The  operation  was  narrowly  watched  by  his  cousin 
and  by  his  two  nephews,  George  and  Harry,  who  were  freshly  arrived 
from  the  city,  and  had  never  witnessed  anything  of  the  kind.  They  had 
many  inquiries  to  make  concerning  hunting  and  trapping,  and  their  uncle 
responded  to  all  their  questions  with  the  utmost  readiness. 

"  I  would  like  to  know,"  said  Harry,  "  how  you  capture  these  animals. 
I  see  there  is  not  a  mark  on  any  of  the  skins,  and  so  you  could  not  have 
shot  them," 


14 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


"  The  musk-rats  were  taken  in  steel-traps,"  was  the  reply,  "  but  the 
minks  in  dead-falls.  As  for  the  foxes,  they  were  poisoned." 

"  I  know  what  a  steel-trap  is,"  Harry  answered.  "  It  has  two  jaws, 
with  teeth  that  spring  together  suddenly  when  a  little  treadle  is  touched. 
You  put  the  bait  on  this  treadle,  or  arrange  it  so  that  the  animal  steps  on 
it,  ajid  he  is  caught  before  he  knows  it.  But  I  don't  understand  what 
you  mean  by  a  dead-fall." 


VISITING    HIS    TRAPS. 


"That  is  a  very  simple  thing,"  his  uncle  replied;  "any  trapper  can 
construct  it  in  a  few  minutes.  It  is  a  log  of  wood  so  arranged  that  when 
a  bait  is  touched  the  log  falls  on  the  neck  of  the  animal,  and  kills  him 
instantly.  It  does  not  injure  the  skin,  and  for  that  reason  is  preferable  to 
a  steel-trap  or  to  shooting.  Besides,  steel-traps  cost  money,  but  a  dead- 


INCIDENTS   OF  A  TRAPPER'S   LIFE. 


fall  costs  nothing.     You  cany  a  hatchet  and  a  knife  with  you,  and  you 
have  all  the  materials  for  constructing  a  dead-fall. 

"The  way  I  trap  these  animals  is  by  constructing  a  line  of  dead-falls 
along  the  bank  of  the  river  a  few  hundred  yards  apart.  Every  morning, 
or  at  least  three  times  a  week,  I  visit  the  traps  and  secure  anything  that 


TIIK    IIOUSK    IJY    TIIIC    KIVKK. 


may  be  in  them.  It  is  not  well  to  leave  them  more  than  two  days  at  a 
time  without  a  visit,  as  the  fur  may  be  injured  by  decomposition  unless 
the  weather  is  cold,  and,  besides,  you  run  the  risk  of  having  the  skin  torn 
and  destroyed  by  skunks  or  other  animals.  I  have  had  several  fine  skins 
utterly  ruined  by  these  pests,  and  the  only  consolation  I  had  was  to  set 
traps  for  them  and  catch  them.  If  you  like,  you  can  go  with  me  to-mor- 


16  THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

row  and  see  how  the  dead-fall  is  made,  and  learn  something  of  the  pleas- 
ures of  trapping." 

The  invitation  was  accepted  without  hesitation,  and  the  boys  promised 
to  be  ready  to  start  early. 

As  soon  as  the  skins  had  been  removed  from  the  captures  of  the 
morning,  the  boys  started  for  a  stroll  in  the  woods. 

The  incident  just  narrated  occurred  one  morning  in  early  winter,  on 
the  bank  of  the  Kennebec  River,  in  Maine.  Joe  Fowler  was  a  farmer  in 
comfortable  circumstances,  and  had  a  fondness  for  trapping  and  hunting ; 
every  winter  he  arranged  his  traps  as  soon  as  the  cold  weather  had  fairly 
set  in,  and  it  was  his  daily  delight  to  visit  them  until  the  approach  of 
spring.  Game  was  fairly  abundant  in  the  neighborhood,  as  the  region 
was  not  very  thickly  settled,  and  Joe  was  generally  able  to  realize  a  snug 
little  sum  from  the  sale  of  his  furs  when  the  season  ended.  His  cousin 
Edward  spent  much  of  his  time  on  the  farm,  but  was  more  devoted  to 
scientific  studies  than  to  the  cultivation  of  corn  and  potatoes.  The  two 
youths  had  just  arrived  from  New  York ;  and  as  they  were  recently  out 
of  school,  and  had  never  visited  the  country  before,  or  at  least  that  part 
of  it,  they  were  greatly  interested  in  everything  they  saw. 

When  the  skinning  of  the  animals  was  ended,  the  boys  went  for  a 
stroll  in  the  woods  not  far  from  the  house.  Hardly  had  they  entered 
the  strip  of  forest  before  George  espied  a  squirrel  on  the  limb  of  a  tree, 
leisurely  cracking  a  nut  and  keeping  an  eye  on  the  boys  at  the  same  time. 

"  Oh,  don't  I  wish  we  could  get  him  !"  said  George. 

"  And  I  too,"  Harry  answered ;  "  but  how  shall  we  do  it  ?" 

"  Let's  get  a  gun  and  shoot  him,"  said  George.  And  away  he  ran  to 
the  house  to  get  the  desired  weapon. 

He  brought  the  gun,  but  before  he  was  near  enough  to  use  it  the 
squirrel  ran  into  a  hole  in  the  tree,  and  was  safe.  The  boys  then  discov- 
ered that  the  tree  was  hollow,  and  had  an  opening  close  to  the  ground. 
Harry  suggested  that  they  could  smoke  the  squirrel  out,  and  at  it  they 
went. 

They  kindled  a  fire  of  dry  leaves  at  the  base  of  the  tree,  and  soon  cre- 
ated a  draught  that  filled  the  hollow  with  smoke.  This  was  more  than 
the  squirrel  could  endure,  and  suddenly,  while  they  were  not  expecting 
him,  he.sprung  from  the  tree  to  another,  and  was  out  of  sight  in  a  few  mo- 
ments. The  boys  gave  up  their  hunt,  and  returned  to  the  house  with  the 
consolation  that  they  had  had  the  excitement  of  the  chase,  if  they  did  not 
secure  any  game. 

The  adventure  led  to  a  little  talk  about  squirrels  and  about  wood-craft 


HUNTING  THE  SQUIRREL. 


17 


in  general.  We  will  learn  by-and-by  what  was  said  on  the  latter  topic. 
Uncle  Edward,  who  was  usually  called  "  the  Doctor,"  more  on  account  of 
his  scientific  attainments  than  for  his  medical  skill,  gave  the  boys  some 
interesting  information  about  the  object  of  their  pursuit  in  the  hollow 
tree,  and  explained  how  it  was  the  squirrel  escaped  so  easily  when  he 
sprung  from  the  tree  after  being  driven 
out  by  the  smoke. 

"  From  what  you  say,"  he  remarked, 
"  I  think  it  must  have  been  of  the  spe- 
cies known  as  the  flying-squirrel.  He 
differs  from  the  common  red  and  gray 
squirrel  in  having  a  membrane  that  ex- 
tends along  each  side  of  the  body  from 
the  fore  feet  to  the  hinder  ones.  This 
membrane  can  be  extended  at  pleasure, 
and  by  means  of  it  he  sails  gracefully 
through  the  air,  though  he  cannot  fly  FLYING-SQUIRREL. 

as  the  birds  do.     When  he  is  pursued 

he  will  traverse  a  forest  with  great  rapidity,  by  going  to  the  top  of  a  tree, 
and  then  jumping  in  a  slanting  direction  to  the  next.  He  lights  on  its 
trunk,  and  then  climbs  to  the  top,  where  he  repeats  his  manoeuvre ;  and 
where  the  trees  are  tall  enough  to  give  him  a  good  impetus,  he  will  easily 
go  thirty  or  forty  yards  at  a  single  leap.  Your  squirrel  escaped  in  this 
way,  and  you  would  need  to  be  pretty  active  to  keep  up  with  him.  I  have 

known  one  of  them  to  travel  a  mile  in 
this  way  in  less  than  a  quarter  of  an 
hour. 

"  The  most  common  are  the  gray  and 
red  squirrels, the  former  being  the  larger, 
and  they  are  found  in  nearly  all  parts  of 
the  United  States.  The  gray  one  is  hunt- 
ed for  his  flesh,  which  is  good  eating,  but 
it  does  not  command  a  high  price  in  the 
market,  and  would  not  make  a  hunter  rich,  even  if  he  killed  a  large  num- 
ber of  squirrels  every  day.  As  for  the  red,  he  is  not  of  much  use,  but 
he  affords  good  sport  to  boys ;  probably  the  first  game  brought  down  by 
three-fourths  of  the  country  boys  in  New  England  is  a  red  or  gray  squir- 
rel, and  more  likely  the  former  than  the  latter.  It  requires  sharp  eyes  to 
discover  him  among  the  leaves  of  a  tree,  and  very  often  there  is  quite  a 
contest  of  skill  between  the  hunter  and  the  hunted.  The  squirrel  clings 

2 


GRAY    SQUIRREL. 


18  THE  YOUNG  NIMBODS. 

closely  to  the  bark,  and  will  manage  to  keep  the  tree  between  him  and 
the  boy  that  is  seeking  his  life  ;  and  it  requires  skilful  manoeuvring  to  get 
sight  of  him.  In  the  Western  States,  where  the  most  of  the  hunters  use 
the  rifle,  they  have  adopted  the  practice  of 'barking  the  tree'  when  they 
shoot  squirrels ;  but  I  don't  think  yon  are  likely  to  try  it  at  present." 

Harry  asked  what  was  meant  by  "  barking  the  tree." 

The  Doctor  explained  that  it  consisted  of  killing  the  game  without 
wounding  him. 

"  But  I  can't  understand,"  said  Harry,  "  how  you  can  shoot  at  a  squir- 
rel and  kill  him  without  wounding  him." 

"Very  simple  when  you  know  how,"  was  the  reply.  "The  hunter 
shoots  at  the  bark  directly  under  the  squirrel ;  the  concussion  kills  him, 
and  throws  his  body  into  the  air,  so  that  it  falls  heavily  to  the  ground. 
Even  if  all  his  life  has  not  been  driven  out  by  the  shock,  it  is  pretty  cer- 
tain to  be  by  the  force  of  the  fall." 

While  this  conversation  was  going  on,  the  Doctor  and  the  two  youths 
had  strolled  from  the  house  to  the  river's  bank.  They  were  joined  by 
Joe,  who  was  interested  in  the  adventure  of  the  boys  with  the  squirrel, 
and  said  they  would  soon  have  an  opportunity  to  attack  larger  game. 
"  One  of  these  days,"  said  he, "  we  will  try  if  we  cannot  find  a  bear  for 
you ;  but  you  must  not  think  you  can  drive  him  as  easily  as  you  did  the 
squirrel.  And  you  must  not  get  into  the  fix  that  one  of  our  neighbors 
did  one  time  when  he  was  camping  out  in  the  forest  in  summer." 

"  How  was  that  ?" 

"  Judge  Goodenow,  who  is  wrell  known  throughout  Maine,  was  the 
hero  of  the  incident.  He  came  into  his  camping-place  at  the  foot  of  a 
large  tree,  and  found  that  some  animal  had  disturbed  everything  in  search 
of  a  meal ;  boots,  hats,  and  toilet  articles  were  scattered  about,  and  the 
beast  was  looking  around  for  something  more  to  derange.  As  he  saw 
the  judge  he  sprung  into  the  tree;  but  the  man  of  law  w^as  after  him  in 
an  instant,  and  had  the  creature  by  the  tail.  Here  he  held  on  and  on,  and 
he  said  afterward  that  he  did  not  know  whether  it  was  safer  to  hold  on 
than  to  let  go.  It  was  a  serious  question  what  to  do,  and  he  afterward 
drew  a  picture  of  the  scene,  and  labelled  it,  'What  will  he  do  with  it?' 
The  bear-hunter  has  the  query  before  him  sometimes,  particularly  when 
he  is  standing  face  to  face  with  that  savage  animal;  if  he  runs,  the  bear 
will  pursue  and  attack  him,  and  if  he  stands  still,  he  has  a  good  chance  of 
a  battle  in  which  he  may  get  the  worst  of  it.  But  we  won't  be  in  a  hur- 
ry to  go  on  bear-hunts,  as  there  is  an  abundance  of  squirrels  and  rabbits 
for  you  to  practise  on  for  the  present. 


IN  A  QUANDARY. 


WHAT    WILL    HE    DO    WITH    IT?" 


"  Perhaps  we  will  see  some  rabbits  on  onr  journey  among  the  traps 
to-morrow  morning,"  he  continued,  "and  may  be  fortunate  enough  to 
have  a  shot  at  them.  But  with  your  inexperience  this  is  not  very  likely, 
as  the  rabbit  is  exceedingly  timid,  and  very  difficult  to  approach.  The 
best  way  for  hunting  him  is  to  drive  him  past  a  point  where  you  are 
standing  ready  to  shoot  him ;  he  runs  fast,  and  you  must  be  quick  with 
your  eye  and  fingers  if  you  bring  him 
down.  We  can  get  great  numbers  of 
rabbits  in  this  region  by  snaring  them, 
which  we  do  by  putting  a  slip -noose 
in  their  paths  at  the  end  of  a  bent 
stick ;  the  rabbit  enters  the  noose,  and 
it  catches  him  suddenly  and  swings 
him  into  the  air,  generally  by  the  heels. 
But  we  don't  consider  that  a  proper 

way  of  taking  them,  as  it  gives  great  pain  to  the  rabbit,  since  he  may 
hang  there  for  hours,  vainly  struggling  to  free  himself,  and  finally  he  dies 
of  suffocation  and  exhaustion." 


THK    UAlilUT. 


20 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


"You  are' quite  right,"  said  the  Doctor.  "No  true  hunter  wishes  to 
inflict  needless  pain,  or  will  consent  to  its  infliction  by  others.  Some 
animals  are  sought  for  their  fur,  others  for  their  flesh,  and  others,  again, 
for  both ;  in  all  cases  it  is  the  duty  of  the  hunter  to  cause  as  little  suffer- 
ing as  possible,  even  though  the  game  he  seeks  may  be  a  noxious  animal, 
like  the  wolf  or  the  lion." 

"To  continue  about  the  rabbit,"  said  Joe.  "He  is  a  timorous  animal, 
and  will  flee  at  the  least  alarm.  But,  like  many  human  beings,  he  is  full 
of  curiosity,  and  will  often  come  to  investigate  any  strange  sound,  after 
satisfying  himself  that  there  is  no  danger.  A  famous  American  artist 


M    H.  BEARD.] 


lias  painted  a  picture,  representing  some  rabbits  that  have  gathered  to 
listen  to  an  owl,  who  is  sitting  in  the  moonlight,  and  occasionally  calling 
out  '  Whoo !'  They  are  puzzled  by  the  noise,  and  it  is  quite  possible 
that  the  owl  is  no  less  alarmed  than  they  at  the  situation. 

"There  is  a  variety  of  rabbit,  west  of  the  Missouri  River  and  on  the 
Pacific  coast,  known  as  '  the  jackass  rabbit,'  from  his  great  size  and  the 
length  of  his  ears.  Hunters  have  shot  at  them  in  mistake  for  larger 


A   DANGEROUS  RABBIT. 


CALIFORNIA    KABIJIT. 


game,  and  some  Western  men,  whose  narrations  are  open  to  doubt,  profess 
to  have  been  kicked  over  by  them,  and  seriously  hurt.     The  California 
rabbit  is  credited  with  this  perform- 
ance, and  also  with  the  possession 
of  enormous  speed.      His  legs  are 
long,  and  he  is  not  burdened  with 
any    superfluous    flesh,   and    conse- 
quently there  is  no  reason  why  he 
should  not  run  as  fast  as  he  likes." 

The  boys  were  in  favor  of  start- 
ing at  once  in  pursuit  of  rabbits, 
but  their  enthusiasm  was  checked 
by  Joe,  who  told  them  that  the  sea- 
son was  not  sufficiently  advanced 
for  chasing  the  long- eared  game, 
and  therefore  a  regular  hunt  for  them 
would  not  be  in  order.  If  they  en- 
countered any  in  their  morning  visit  to  the  traps,  they  would  try  a  shot  at 
them,  but  the  prospect. was  by  no  means  certain. 

In  the  evening  the  party  sat 
around  the  fire  of  blazing  logs  in 
the  broad  fireplace  of  Joe's  house, 
and  the  time  was  devoted  to  stories 
of  hunting  adventures  until  it  was 
the  hour  for  going  to  bed.  The 
boys  had  no  stories  to  tell,  as  their 
experiences  in  the  sports  of  the 
chase  were  limited  to  the  adventure 
with  the  squirrel  in  the  hollow 
tree  ;  but  the  Doctor  and  Joe  had  an 
abundant  fund  of  reminiscences  of 
forest  and  prairie,  lake  and  stream, 
that  three  hours  of  conversation  did 
not  seem  to  exhaust  in  the  least. 
Evidently,  they  were  fond  of  hunt- 

l-UOVIIMNG    FOH    HIS    FAMILY.  ™&  <*  they   WOUld    HOt   haV6   deVOted 

so  much  time  to  it,  and  it  was  equal- 
ly evident  that  their  memories  were  good  for  the  adventures  through 
which  they  had  passed. 

"What  would  you  like  to  hear  about?"  said  Joe,  to  the  boys,  as  the 


22  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

chairs  were  drawn  up  in  front  of  the  glowing  hearth.  "  Shall  I  tell  you 
about  bears  or  tigers,  antelopes  or  lions,  or  is  there  any  other  animal 
whose  habits  you  wish  to  learn  ?" 

The  boys  replied  that  they  would  leave  the  selection  of  the  subject  to 
Uncle  Joe,  and  be  satisfied  with  whatever  he  chose  to  tell  them. 

"Well,  in  that  case,"  'Joe  responded,  "I  will  tell  of  my  adventure  last 
year,  when  I  killed  a  bear  with  a  hatchet,  and  took  a  couple  of  cubs  from 
her  den  ;  and  if  I  make  any  mistakes  in  the  telling,  the  Doctor  will  cor- 
rect me." 


A   DANCING-PARTY   IN   THE   WOODS. 


JOE  FOWLER'S  GREAT  BEAR-HUNT. 


CHAPTER  II. 

JOE  FOWLER'S  GREAT  BEAR -HUNT. —ADVENTURE  WITH   A  GRIZZLY  IN 
CALIFORNIA. 

"  T  WENT  out  one  morning,"  Joe  continued,  "to  set  some  traps  on  the 
J-  banks  of  a  little  brook  that  comes  into  the  river  about  five  miles 
from  here.     I  had  my  gun.  and  two  dogs  along,  and  I  carried  a  hatchet 
for  making  the  traps,  and  wore  my  hunting-knife  at  my  waist  belt. 

"  I  set  three  or  four  traps,  and  while  I  was  making  -them  the  dogs 
were  roving  about,  trying  to  scare  up  something.  Now  and  then  they 
disturbed  a  squirrel,  and  sent  him  chattering  to  the  top  of  a  tree;  but 
I  wasn't  out  for  squirrels,  and  didn't  pay  much  attention  to  what  they 
were  doing.  By-and-by  I  heard  them  barking  furiously,  a  little  way  off 
among  the  rocks,  and  when  I  called  them  they  paid  no  attention  to  me. 


TIGE    AND    JACK    IHSCOVKIl    THE    OAMK. 


24: 


THE  YOUNG  NIMKOD8. 


I  knew,  then,  that  they  had  something  more  than  a  squirrel  or  a  rabbit, 
and  as  soon  as  I  had  finished  the  trap  I  was  working  on  I  went  to  see 
what  they  were  about. 

"  There  was  old  Tige  on  one  rock,  and  Jack  on  another,  their  stumpy 
tails  in  the  air,  and  the  hair  on  their  backs  bristled  up  like  the  quills  of  a 
porcupine.  There  was  a  hole  between  the  rocks,  and  it  was  partly  cov- 


IN    THE    BEAKS    EMBRACE. 


ered  by  a  log,  and  their  barking  and  growling  were  directed  to  the  hole. 
When  I  got  near,  I  found  that  there  was  a  good  deal  of  noise  coming 
from  the  inside;  it  wasn't  to  be  mistaken  for  anything  but  the  growling 
of  a  bear.  I  felt  that  I  was  in  for  it,  and  must  fight  the  beast  single- 
handed,  and  regretted  that  I  had  a  shot-gun  with  me  in  place  of  a  rifle. 
But  I  remembered  that  I  had  two  or  three  charges  of  buck-shot  in  my 


HOW  JOE   FOWLER   KILLED   THE    BEAR.  25 

pocket,  and  while  the  dogs  kept  the  bear  occupied  I  drew  the  small  shot 
that  were  in  the  gun,  and  put  some  back-shot  and  a  ball  in  their  place. 

"  Then  I  got  up  to  the  log,  and  could  see  the  eyes  of  the  bear  shining 
like  two  great  coals  of  fire  from  the  inside  pf  the  hole.  I  got  the  best 
aim  I  could,  and  fired ;  for  an  instant  the  air  was  full  of  srnoke,  and  then 
the  bear  came  rushing  out  of  the  den,  and  directly  at  me.  I  struck  at 
her  with  my  empty  gun,  and  she  hit  it  a  blow  with  her  paw,  and  sent  it 
whirling  a  dozen  yards  away.  The  bear  can  strike  a  terrible  blow  with  its 
fore  paws;  the  way  that  gun  whizzed  through  the  air  and  against  the 
rocks  wyas  an  indication  of  the  strength  of  the  animal  I  was  fighting  with. 

"  The  next  moment  she  sprung  on  me  and  threw  me  to  the  ground, 
or,  rather,  across  the  log,  and  as  I  fell,  she  clasped  her  great  shaggy  paws 
around  me  to  give  me  the  death  hug.  I  thought  it  was  all  up  with  me, 
and  so  it  would  have  been  if  the  dogs  had  not  come  to  help  me.  She 
tried  to  tear  me  with  her  hind  feet,  while  her  fore  paws  were  clinched 
around  me ;  but  her  claws  slipped  on  my  trousers,  which  were  of  thick 
duck  that  had  been  oiled  to  keep  out  the  rain,  and  each  time  she  drew 
them  up  they  slid  harmlessly  down  to  my  boots. 

"  I  called  to  the  dogs,  and  they  stopped  barking,  and  concluded  to  do 
a  little  biting.  One  of  them  seized  her  by  the  ear,  and  the  other  by  the 
hind  leg;  and  they  took  such  good  hold,  that  they  induced  her  to  let  go 
of  me  and  turn  on  them.  As  she  turned,  they  darted  into  the  under- 
brush, and  among  the  rocks,  and  worried  her  so  as  to  keep  her  attention 
without  allowing  themselves  to  be  hurt.  I  went  for  my  gun,  and*  found 
that  it  was  useless,  as  the  lock  was  broken  by  the  force  of  the  blow,  and  the 
barrel  was  bent.  I  dropped  it  and  drew  my  hatchet  from  my  waist  belt, 
and  then  rushed  forward  to  where  the  dogs  and  the  bear  were  engaged. 

"  One  dog  was  in  front  of  the  bear,  and  one  in  the  rear.  She  jiid  not 
see  me  till  I  was  close  at  her  side,  and  had  my  hatchet  in  the  air  ready  for 
a  blow.  I  took  her  by  the  back  of  the  neck  just  as  Tige  jumped  at  her 
nose,  and  was  lucky  enough  to  bury  the  hatchet  in  her  skull,  so  that  she 
fell  dead  to  the  ground.  Then  I  sat  down  and  began  to  examine  my 
wounds. 

"  To  my  surprise,  I  found  I  had  only  a  few  scratches  that  were  really 
of  no  consequence,  and  then  I  took  a  look  at  the  bear,  which  was  of  the 
largest  size,  and  a  female.  I  thought  possibly  she  had  young  ones  in  the 
den,  which  would  account  for  her  fierceness,  as  the  bear  is  always  most 
savage  when  it  has  cubs  that  are  not  weaned.  I  went  to  the  entrance  of 
the  den  and  listened,  and,  sure  enough,  I  could  hear  some  faint  sounds 
that  I  thought  were  the  cries  of  the  young  for  their  mother.  Then  I 


26  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

realized  what  a  peril  I  had  gone  through,  and  what  a  narrow  escape  mine 
had  been." 

"  How  was  that  ?"  Harry  asked. 

"  There  is  no  rage  greater  than  that  of  a  she-bear  with  cubs ;  and  the 
bravest  of  hunters  are  unwilling  to  meet  her  under  such  circumstances. 
At  other  times  a  bear  will  generally  endeavor  to  avoid  an  encounter  witli 


THE   DEADLY   BLOW. 


a  man ;  but  when  it  is  a  she-bear  with  young,  she  advances  to  the  attack, 
and  fights  with  desperation.  It  is  the  instinct  of  protection  that  prevails 
with  nearly  all  the  animal  creation  from  man  downward ;  and  in  the  case 
of  a  bear,  it  is  an  instinct  to  be  dreaded  by  the  hunter.  I  have  heard 
of  an  old  hunter  -\vho  was  walking  in  the  forest,  and,  on  seeing  some  cubs 
at  play,  he  shouldered  his  rifle,  and  remembered  that  he  had  business  at 


SECURING  THE   CUBS. 


27 


home.  He  was  a  man  of  courage ;  and  while  some  who  did  not  know 
the  habits  of  the  bear  used  to  laugh  at  his  cowardice,  those  who  were 
skilled  in  wood-craft  said  he  had  merely  shown  a  thoughtful  prudence  in 
shunning  an  encounter  that  might  very  likely  end  in  his  death. 

"  I  rested  a  little  to  get  my  breath,  and  then  proceeded  to  secure  the 
cubs.  I  drew  my  hunting-knife,  and  held  it  behind  me  as  a  precaution, 
and  in  this  way  I  backed  into  the  den.  The  dogs  stood  outside,  ready  to 
assist  me  in  case  I  got  into  trouble;  but  I  was  not  at  all  fearful  of  an  ac- 
cident when  the  mother  was  lying  dead  on  the  ground  and  the  cubs  were 
safe  inside." 


EXl'LOKIXG   THE    BEN. 


"  Weren't  you  afraid  that  the  bear's  mate  would  be  there  ?"  one  of  the 
boys  asked. 

•  "I  had  very  little  fear  of  him,  for  two  reasons,"  was  the  reply.  "In 
the  first  place,  the  noise  of  our  struggle  would  have  drawn  him  outside  in 
case  he  had  been  at  home,  and  he  would  have  come  in  for  a  share  of  the 
fight.  Secondly,  it  is  believed  among  hunters  that,  when  the  female  bear 
has  young  cubs  in  her  care,  the  male  goes  away  to  another  abiding-place, 
and  leaves  her  alone.  Whether  he  hopes  to  escape  the  crying  of  the  in- 
fants, or  the  anger  of  their  mother,  by  leaving  home  ;  or  whether  he  goes 
away  so  that  his  family  can  have  all  the  room  to  themselves,  I  am  unable 


28 


THE   YOUXG  NIMRODS. 


to  say.  Perhaps  the  known  fierceness  of  the  mother  at  this  time  may  be 
vented  on  the  head  of  the  .family,  and  he  finds  the  house  too  warm  for 
comfort.  At  all  events,  he  goes  a  good  distance  off,  and  does  not  visit 
home  again  for  some  weeks. 

"  At  any  rate,  he  was  not  there  in  this  particular  case,  and  I  had  no 
trouble  in  getting  to  the  bottom  of  the  den.     There  I  found  a  couple  of 

cubs  so  young  that  their  eyes  were 

^    f  not   yet   opened.      They  could   not 

have  been  more  than  four  or  five 
days  old ;  but  they  had  a  keen  in- 
stinct that  made  them  cry  and  fight 
when  I  tried  to  pick  them  up.  They 
were  about  as  large  as  a  half-grown 
kitten,  with  skins  as  soft  as  silk,  and 
with  a  wonderful  amount  of  strength 
in  their  very  juvenile  muscles.  I 
had  some  difficulty  in  getting  them 
out  of  the  den  in  consequence  of 
their  struggles,  but  succeeded  at  last, 
and  brought  them  away.  The  dead 
carcass  I  left  in  care  of  the  dogs,  while 
I  went  to  the  nearest  farm  for  help  to  take  my  prize  home.  We  skinned 
the  bear  where  she  lay  and  cut  the  meat  into  quarters,  in  order  to  facili- 
tate its  transportation ;  and  four  of  us  had  all  we  wanted  to  do  to  take  it 
to  the  road,  where  we  could  load  it  on  a  sled,  and  relieve  our  shoulders." 
"What  did  you  do  with  the  cubs?"  Harry  inquired. 
"  I  brought  them  home,  and  gave  them  to  the  man  that  looks  after  my 
cattle  and  attends  to  matters  in  general  about  the  place.  Very  soon  they 
forgot  all  about  their  mother  and  their  den  in  the  mountains,  and  were 
perfectly  at  home  in  their  new  quarters.  They  became  very  fond  of  John 
as  soon  as  their  eyes  were  opened,  and  learned  to  know  his  voice,  and  to 
come  when  he  called  them.  He  fed  them  on  milk,  and  they  devoured  so 
much  that  John  said  it  would  require  all  one  cow  could  produce  to  raise 
them.  They  had  the  free  run  of  the  house,  and  when  John  came  in,  he 
had  only  to  call, '  Pets !  Pets !'  and  they  would  come  scampering  to  his 
side,  and  climbing  on  his  knees.  One  would  seize  his  thumb  and  suck 
away  at  it,  while  the  other  tried  to  reach  his  face  and  kiss  him.  They 
were  quite  jealous  of  each  other,  like  young  dogs,  and  a  good  many  of 
their  ways  showed  that  the  bear  has  a  distant  relation  to  the  animal  that 
hates  him  so  naturally.  My  dogs  were  never  very  friendly  toward  the 


JOE  8    PHIZES. 


THE    CUBS  AND   THE   BABY. 


29 


infant  bears;  but  they  soon  learned  that  the  cubs  were  not  to  be  harmed, 
and  they  did  not  venture  to  injure  them. 

"  The  cubs  were  quite  fond  of  John's  year-old  baby,  and  used  to  climb 


JOHN    AND    HIS    FKT8. 


into  the  cradle  with  it.     But  they  would  not  let  him  sleep,  and  one  of 
their  favorite  amusements  was  to  seize  his  toes  and  snek  them.     The 


30 


THE   YOUNG  NIMEODS. 


youngster  did  not  relish  this,  and  would  kick  the  intruder  out ;  hut  a 
cub  would  hardly  land  on  the  floor  before  he  started  back  again  and  re- 
newed the  attack  on  the  toes.  The  boy  and  the  cubs  used  to  roll  on  the 
floor,  and  play  for  an  hour  or  so  without  fatigue  to  the  latter,  though  the 
boy  sometimes  found  the  sport  too  much  for  him. 

"  The  cubs  grew  pretty  fast,  and  it  wasn't  long  before  they  were  so 


THE   BOY    AND    THE    CUBS. 


strong  that  tlieir  play  became  dangerous  for  the  urchin.  Evidently  they 
"did  not  intend  any  mischief,  but  they  were  not  aware  of  their  strength, 
and  used  it  without  proper  regard  for  the  result.  A  bear  is  not  a  gentle 
beast  to  deal  with,  and  the  phrase 'rough  as  a  bear 'has  a  good  deal  of 
meaning.  There  is  a  story  of  a  bear  that  was  much  attached  to  his  mas- 
ter, and  one  day  when  the  latter  was  asleep  a  fly  lighted  on  his  face.  The 


VARIETIES   OF  BEARS.  31 

bear  tried  to  brush  away  the  fly  so  that  his  master  should  not  be  disturbed, 
but  unfortunately  his  zeal  overran  his  discretion,  and  he  knocked  the 
poor  man's  head  off  in  the  attempt. 

"  When  the  cubs  became  too  large  to  keep  around  the  house,  John  sold 
them  to  a  travelling  showman,  and  they  are  now  in  New  York,  or  were 
at  last  accounts." 

George  asked  what  kind  of  a  bear  it  was  that  his  uncle  had  killed— 
whether  it  was  black,  brown,  or  grizzly. 

"  It  was  a  black  bear,"  was  the  reply.  "  The  brown  bear  and  the  black 
are  the  only  members  of  the  ursine  family  that  are  found  in  this  part  of 


YOUNG   GRIZZLIES   AT   PLAY. 

the  country.  The  grizzly  bear  abounds  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and 
west  of  them,  but  is  never  heard  of  east  of  the  Missouri  River,  unless  he 
has  been  brought  there  in  a  cage." 

"  The  black  bear,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  is  known  to  the  scientific  world 
as  Ursus  Americanus,  and  is  very  much  like  the  brown  bear  of  Europe, 
lie  has  a  thick,  black  fur,  and  prefers  vegetable  to  animal  food.  He  is 
particularly  fond  of  honey,  and  of  nearly  all  the  berries  that  grow  in  the 
Eastern  States  and  Canada.  He  also  eats  green  corn,  and  sometimes 
makes  great  havoc  in  the  fields  just  as  the  corn  is  ripening.  He  can  climb 
a  tree  with  great  rapidity,  and  it  is  not  a  good  plan  for  a  person  pursued 
by  an  enraged  bear  to  go  up  a  tree,  provided  the  bear  is  a  black  one." 


32  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

"Don't  the  other  bears  climb  trees  as  well?"  one  of  the  boys  inquired. 

"  Some  of  them  can,"  the  Doctor  answered  ;  "  but  not  all.  The  griz- 
zly cannot  do  so,  and  he  never  tries ;  but  when  he  has  a  man  in  a  tree-top, 
he  will  wait  for  hours  at  the  foot  in  hopes  that  he  will  come  down.  One 
of  them  kept  me  astride  of  a  limb  for  nearly  a  whole  day  ;  and  perhaps  he 
would  have  remained  all  night  if  he  had  not  been  attracted  away  by  a 
noise  of  an  animal  passing  in  the  bushes  not  far  off. 

"  The  grizzly  bear,"  he  continued,  "  is  the  most  .ferocious  of  all  the 


A    PAIR    OF    GRIZZLIKS. 


tribe,  and  he  is  also  the  largest,  with  a  single  exception.  He  is  the  same 
to  America  as  the  Bengal  tiger  to  Asia,  or  the  lion  to  Africa;  and  his 
scientific  name  is  Ursus  horribilis.  His  popular  name  comes  from  his 
color,  which  is  a  mixture  of  white,  brown,  and  black.  The  polar  bear  is 
larger  than  the  grizzly,  but  not  so  ferocious.  The  latter  rarely  attacks 
without  provocation;  but  when  he  is  assailed,  he  pursues,  and  fights  to 


ADVENTURE   WITH   A   GRIZZLY   IN   CALIFORNIA.  33 

the  last;  and  be  will  carry  away  a  large  quantity  of  lead — larger  than 
any  other  bear,  unless  it  be  his  polar  brother. 

"  Once  when  I  was  in  California  I  was  out  with  a  party  of  gentlemen 
in  pursuit  of  grizzlies.  We  came  in  sight  of  one  quietly  feeding  on  ber- 
ries among  the  bushes.  He  started  to  go  as  we  approached  him,  but  he 
growled  at  us,  as  much  as  to  say  that  he  did  not  relish  the  disturbance. 
He  was  walking  rapidly  away,  when  one  of  our  party  rode  forward  and 
fired  at  him. 

"  The  grizzly  changed  his  course  immediately,  and  instead  of  continuing 
his  walk  from  us  he  ran  toward  us,  and  he  ran  fast  too.  As  'he  came  on, 
we  gave  him  half  a  dozen  bullets,  but  they  did  not  have  any  effect  in  check- 
ing his  progress;  he  was  almost  within  his  length  of  me,  when  a  bullet, 
more  successful  than  the  rest,  dropped  him  on  his  knees.  This  gave  us 
time  to  put  fresh  cartridges  in  our  rifles,  and  we  gave  him  another  round 
at  close  range.  We  thought  he  was  finished,  but  he  suddenly  rose  and 
made  a  dash  at  one  of  the  party,  whom  he  seized  by  the  leg.  Just  at  this 
moment  I  managed  to  put  a  ball  in  his  head,  with  the  muzzle  of  my  rifle 
not  more  than  a  foot  from  his  eye.  That  shot  settled  him,  for  he  fell  dead, 
and  as  he  fell  he  released  his  hold  of  the  man's  leg.  He  had  caused  his 
teeth  to  meet  in  the  flesh,  but  a  stout  boot  which  he  was  obliged  to  pene- 
trate before  reaching  the  leg  had  preserved  the  latter  from  serious  injury, 
especially  as  my  shot  was  delivered  a  second  or  so  after  he  had  taken  hold. 

"  It  requires  a  hunter  to  be  very  brave,  or,  rather,  to  possess  more  reck- 
lessness than  bravery,  to  attack  a  grizzly  single-handed  ;  a  young  and  am- 
bitious hunter  might  do  so,  but  an  old  one  is  apt  to  be  cautious.  I  have 
known  a  grizzly  to  live  an  hour  with  three  bullets  through  his  lungs  and 
one  through  his  heart ;  and  there  is  an  instance  on  record  of  one  that  swum 
half  a  mile  with  two  bullets  in  his  heart,  and  a  dozen  in  other  parts  of  the 
body.  The  brain  is  the  most  vulnerable  part  of  the  animal ;  but  it  is  dif- 
ficult to  reach,  on  account  of  the  thickness  and  hardness  of  the  skull.  It 
is  the  tenacity  of  life  in  the  grizzly,  combined  with  his  great  ferocit}*, 
that  makes  him  so  dangerous  to  the  solitary  hunter.  There  is  very  little 
chance  of  killing  him  at  the  first  shot,  and,  when  wounded,  lie  will  make 
a  hard  and  earnest  fight  for  his  life. 

"  There  is  a  story  in  California  of  a  man  that  once  found  the  track  of 
a  grizzly  bear,  and  followed  it  for  a  day  and  a  half  before  giving  it  up. 
A  friend  asked  him  why  he  abandoned  it,  after  following  it  so  long,  and 
he  answered, 

" '  The  fact  is,  that  track  was  getting  a  little  too  fresh  to  be  safe.' 

"I  was  once  invited  to  join  an  excursion  party  in  southern  California, 

3 


34  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

whose  object  was  a  pleasant  fortnight  or  so  among  the  mountains  of  the 
coast  range.  We  were  a  dozen  or  more,  and  there  were  not  more  than 
two  or  three  of  the  lot  that  had  any  experience  worth  mentioning  in 
hunting.  We  had  a  distinguished  judge  of  the  California  courts;  an 


CAMPING    IN    SOUTHERN    CALIFORNIA. 


officer  of  the  army,  with  the  rank  of  general ;  two  lawyers  well  known  in 
San  Francisco ;  and  the  balance  of  the  party  included  merchants,  mining 
speculators,  and  a  doctor  of  medicine.  We  made  our  camp  in  a  pleasant 
valley  in  the  mountains,  and  on  the  bank  of  a  stream  that  supplied  us 


'A    GRIZZLY   IN   CAMP !" 


35 


with  an  abundance  of  pure  water.  The  first  day  the  hunting  members 
of  the  party  went  out  and  succeeded  in  shooting  a  deer  and  some  smaller 
game,  that  gave  us  all  the  fresh  meat  we  wanted. 

"  The  second  morning,  just  as  the  cook  announced  that  breakfast  was 
ready,  and   the  members   of  the  party  were  bringing  their  fresh  appe- 


"A  GRIZZLY  IN  CAMP!" 


tites  to  bear  on  the  venison,  there  was  a  cry  from  some  one  that  a  grizzly 
was  in  the  camp. 

"All  thought  of  breakfast  was  abandoned  at  once,  and   everybody 

looked  out  for  his  own  safetv. 


86  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

"The  judge  sprung  for  the  nearest  tree,  which  was  about  seven  feet 
in  diameter,  and  without  limbs  for  at  least  twenty  yards  from  the  grou-nd. 
He  made  several  attempts  to  throw  his  arms  around  it;  but  he  might  as 
well  have  tried  to  clasp  the  dome  of  the- Capitol  at  Washington.  He 
stuck  to  it  for  two  or  three  minutes,  and  then  ran  for  a  tree  that  was  bet- 
ter suited  to  an  unskilful  climber,  and  afforded  him  a  safe  retreat. 


THE    JUDGES    EFFORT. 


"  The  doctor  ascended  a  little  sapling  that  bent  beneath  him,  and 
threatened  to  come  to  the  ground.  As  he  perceived  his  danger,  he  shout- 
ed aloud  for  help;  but  nobody  seemed  inclined  to  assist  him,  as  each  man 
was  busy  enough  with  his  own  affairs.  His  legs  were  tied  in  a  knot 
around  the  trunk  of  the  infant  tree,  and  he  clung  with  a  desperation  that 
is  only  inspired  by  fear  of  bodily  harm. 


AN   EXCITING  MOMENT. 


37 


"  The  greatest  alarm  was  shown 
by  the  old  negro  who  officiated  as 
cook.  At  the  first  signal  of  danger 
lie  threw  himself  on  the  ground,  and 
flung  his  heels  in  the  air  so  vigorous- 
ly as  to  send  his  shoes  flying  over 
his  back.  One  of  them  hit  him  be- 
tween the  shoulders,  and  he  mistook 
the  inanimate  missile  for  the  paw  of 
the  dreaded  bear. 

"'Lemme  'lone!  lemme  'lone!' 
he  yelled,  in  terror;  'gway  fum 
here !  gway  fum  here !  I  hain't 
done  nuflin,  lemme  'lone!'  And  he 
made  such  a  noise,  that  any  ordinary 
bear  ought  to  have  been  frightened 
out  of  his  wits. 

"  There  was  a  loud  rattling  in 
the  bushes,  and  evidently  the  bear 
was  of  great  size,  to  judge  by  the 
way  he  made  the  underbrush  bend 

and  break  beneath  him.  There  would  be  a  crashing  of  a  few  seconds, 
followed  by  a  moment  of  partial  silence,  in  which  the  bear  was  crouch- 
ing to  make  his  fatal  leap  into  camp.  Everybody  was  dreading  the 
appearance  of  the  carnivorous  beast,  and  each  was  wondering  who  would 


THE    DOCTOE  S    ESCAPE. 


'GWAY  FUM  HEKE!" 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


be  eaten  up  first,  with  a  quiet  hope  in  his  heart  that  it  would  be  some- 
body else  than  himself.  The  general  stood  his  ground  for  awhile,  but 
it  was  not  long  before  he  caught  the  infection,  and  sought  safety  in  the 
bushes,  where  he  darted  as  though  he  had  been  a  rabbit.  He  forgot  that 
the  creek  lay  just  beyond  the  bushes,  and  the  next  instant  he  was  in 
the  water  up  to  his  waist,  and  making  for  the  other  side.  '  The  grizzly 
is  not  fond  of  water,'  he  remarked  to  himself,  'and  perhaps  this  is  the 
best  place  I  could  find.' 

"Jack,  the  cook,  kept  up  his  yelling,  and  whenever  he  suspended  it 
for  want  of  breath,  a  fresh  crash  in  the  bushes  would  be  sure  to  renew  it. 
At  length  the  suspense  was  ended  by  the  appearance  of  the  beast. 

"  He  dashed  into  camp,  where 
we  could  see  him  distinctly;  and 
when  he  showed  himself,  those  that 
were  in  the  tree-tops  proceeded  to 
come  down  as  quickly  as  possible. 

"The  supposed  grizzly  proved 
to  be  a  half -wild  mule  belonging 
to  one  of  our  teams.  He  had  been 
picketed  with  a  long  rope,  or  lariat, 
after  the  custom  in  the  Far  West, 
and  somehow  his  lariat  had  got 
loose,  and  allowed  him  to  stray  into 
the  bushes.  Very  naturally  the 
rope  caught  there,  and  he  became 
entangled  and  thrown  down,  and  it 
was  while  struggling  to  free  him- 
self from  his  toils  that  he  made 
such  a  crashing  as  to  set  the  timid 
ones  to  supposing  it  was  a  grizzly 
coming  upon  them. 
THE  GENERAL'S  DIVE.  "  The  judge  vowed  that  he  knew 

all  the  time  it  was  only  a  mule,  and 

lie  simply  climbed  the  tree  to  encourage  the  others  and  keep  the  fun 
going.  The  same  explanation  was  given  by  the  doctor;  in  fact,  it  was 
the  only  one  he  could  give  with  any  show  of  veracity,  and  the  show  was 
very  faint  indeed.  The  general  said  he  usually  took  his  bath  at  that  time 
of  the  morning,  and  just  as  the  alarm  was  raised  the  idea  came  over  him 
that  it  was  the  proper  hour  for  his  plunge.  Every  one  except  the  cook 
had  an  explanation  to  make;  he,  honest  fellow,  did  not  try  to  explain 


BADLY   SCARED. 


39 


further  than  that  he  « was  done  scared  out  of  his  wits,  and  thought  the 
day  o'  judgment  had  come  sure.'  During  the  rest  of  our  stay  in  the 
mountains  lie  had  an  antipathy  for  that  particular  mule,  and  never  missed 
an  opportunity  to  say  something  savage  about  him." 


THE    REAL    GRIZZLY, 


40  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAFFER   III. 

VISITING  THE  TRAPS.— THE   HUDSON'S  BAY   FUR   COMPANY. 

THE  boys  were  up  before  daybreak,  ready  to  start  for  the  visit  to  the 
traps.  They  were  impatient  to  be  off,  and  the  short  delay  which  was 
interposed  by  their  uncle  Joe  seemed  to  them  a  very  long  one.  The 
Doctor  concluded  to  be  of  the  party,  much  to  the  delight  of  the  boys, 
who  knew  they  would  receive  some  practical  information  concerning  the 
habits  of  the  animals  they  were  seeking.  The  sun  was  just  peering  above 
the  horizon  when  they  left  the  house  and  went  in  the  direction  of  the 
trapping-ground. 

They  followed  the  road  along  the  bank  of  the  river  for  about  a  mile, 
and  then  turned  into  a  path  through  the  woods.  In  a  little  while  they 
came  to  a  brook  that  rippled  gently  along  under  the  ice,  and  close  by 
the  edge  of  it  was  one  of  Joe's  dead-falls. 

The  dead-fall  contained  a  mink,  and  it  did  not  require  more  than  five 
minutes  for  Joe  to  secure  his  prize,  reset  the  trap,  and  remove,  as  much 
as  possible,  all  traces  of  the  capture.  Harry  requested  the  honor  of  trans- 
porting the  burden,  to  which  Joe  readily  assented  ;  and  the  youth  trudged 
proudly  along  with  the  mink  slung  over  his  shoulder  after  the  manner  of 
an  old  hunter. 

Soon  they  came  to  another  trap  that  had  been  visited  by  something, 
as  was  evident  by  the  trampling  of  the  light  snow  around  it;  but  the 
bait  was  untouched,  and  the  log  remained  in  the  position  where  it  had 
been  originally  placed.  Joe  remarked  that  he  would  change  it  a  little, 
as  the  minks  had  evidently  discovered  its  character,  and  would  not  be 
likely  to  enter  it  where  it  stood.  The  Doctor  and  the  boys  sat  down  on 
the  bank  to  watch  the  proposed  change ;  and  while  Joe  was  busy,  the 
Doctor  told  George  to  examine  the  capture  of  the  morning,  and  de- 
scribe it. 

George  turned  the  mink  over  and  over  in  his  hands,  stroking  the 
glossy  fur,  and  admiring  the  slender  proportions  of  its  body.  He  was 
silent  for  a  minute  or  two,  and  then  said, 


VISITING  THE   TRAPS. 


41 


"  He  is  about  fourteen  inches  long  from  the  nose  to  the  base  of  the 
tail,  and  the  tail  by  itself  is  about  nine  inches.  The  fur  is  a  dark  brown 
on  the  body,  and  the  tail  is  nearly  black  ;  and  there  is  a  white  spot  on  the 
chin,  extending  back  to  the  throat.  He  has  whiskers  like  a  cat,  and  his 
ears  are  short  and  round,  while  his  eyes  are  small,  and  almost  in  a  line 
from  his  ears  to  his  nose." 

George  paused,  and  then  Harry  took  up  the  description. 


THE    HOME    OF    THE    MINK. 


"  The  mink's  body  is  long  and  slender,  and  very  much  like  a  weasel's. 
The  legs  are  short  and  strong,  and  each  foot  has  five  sharp  claws.  Can 
the  mink  climb  a  tree?" 

"  It  rarely  does,"  replied  the  Doctor,  "  but  it  will  run  up  a  tree  when 
closely  pursued,  or  when  seeking  game  that  it  knows  to  be  there.  It  al- 
ways lives  near  the  water,  and  can  swim  and  dive  with  great  rapidity.  It 


42  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

catches  fish  occasionally  ;  but  its  favorite  food  consists  of  mice  and  simi- 
lar small  animals,  and  it  is  very  fond  of  birds.  It  comes  into  the  farm- 
yards at  night,  and  I  have  known  a  single  mink  to  kill  half  a  dozen  chick- 
ens in  a  short  time;.  You  observe  that  the  traps  are  baited  with  the  heads 
of  chickens,  and  if  these  are  not  to  be  had  conveniently,  the  body  of  a 
small  bird  is  an  excellent  substitute." 

By  this  time  the  change  of  the  dead-fall  was  completed,  and  the  party 
moved  on. 

Their  next  visit  was  to  a  steel-trap  that  had  been  set  for  musquash,  or 
musk-rats,  as  they  are  better  known  by  the  latter  name.  One  was  found 
firmly  caught  by  the  foreleg,  and  he  was  soon  despatched  by  a  blow  on 


A    PAIR    OF    MUSK-RATS. 


the  head.  A  little  farther  on  was  another  trap,  which  contained  a  leg 
but  no  body.  The  boys  rolled  their  eyes  in  wonder  at  the  discovery. 

"  That  is  the  foot  of  a  mink,"  said  Joe. 

"  But  how  did  it  get  there  ?"  asked  George. 

"The  mink  got  there,  and  when  he  found  himself  caught,  he  gnawed 
his  leg  off  and  escaped." 

"  Gnawed  it  off  himself !" 

"  Yes ;  there  are  several  animals  that  do  that  when  they  are  caught  in 
steel-traps.  The  fox,  mink,  otter,  wolverine,  and  ermine  will  do  so,  and  I 
have  known  the  odoriferous  skunk  to  follow  their  example.  On  one  oc- 
casion, when  I  had  caught  a  skunk,  he  gnawed  his  leg  on  the  wrong  side 
of  the  jaws  of  the  trap,  and  didn't  get  free  after  all." 

Harry  tried  to  find  a  resemblance  between  the  mink  and  the  musk-rat, 


THE  MUSK-RAT  AND  THE  ERMINE.  43 

but  couldn't  discover  anything  to  lead  him  to  believe  they  were  of  the 
same  family.     So  he  questioned  the  Doctor  about  them. 

"The  musk-rat,"  replied  the  latter,  "is  not  of  the  same  family  as  the 
mink.  It  is  a  rodent,  and  its  scientific  name  is  Fiber  zibethicus.  It  lives 
near  the  water  like  the  mink,  but  spends  much  more  time  in  it.  It  has  a 
general  resemblance  to  a  rat,  as  its  head  is  of  the  same  shape,  and  its  tail 
lias  no  fur  or  hair  to  cover  it.  It  eats  all  kinds  of  food  like  the  rat,  but 
prefers  vegetables ;  you  bait  a  mink  trap  with  meat,  as  you  have  seen,  but 
the  best  bait  for  the  musk-rat  is  a  parsnip  or  a  sweet  apple. 

"  The  mink  is  called  Putoris  vison  by  the  naturalists,  and  is  of  the 
same  family  as  the  weasel  and  the  ermine;  in  fact,  he  resembles  the  er- 
mine in  shape,  but  is  dark  instead  of  white." 

"Is  the  ermine  white  all  the  year,"  said  one  of  the  boys,  "or  only  in 
winter  ?" 

"  He  is  of  a  dirty  white,  approaching  brown,  in  summer,"  was  the  reply  ; 
"  but  when  the  snow  falls  he  becomes  of  a  snowy  white,  and  then  his  fur 
is  valuable.     The  fur  of  the  mink  is  not 
worth  much  in  summer,  as  it  is  coarse 
and  loose ;  but  when  the  winter  sets  in, 
and  the  frost  covers  the  ground,  it  has 
the  glossy  appearance  that  makes  it  so 
pretty." 

"  How  much  is  a  good  skin  worth  ?" 
Harry  asked.  THE  ERMINE. 

"  Prices  vary  a  great  deal,"  the  Doc- 
tor answered.  "Just  now  a  good  mink-skin,  taken  at  the  right  time  of 
the  year,  will  sell  readily  for  three  dollars.  The  fur  is  in  fashion,  and 
that  is  what  makes  it  so  high.  I  have  seen  the  time  when  it  was  not  easy 
to  get  fifty  cents  for  one,  and  all  because  the  fur  was  not  sought  by  people 
in  fashionable  life. 

"How  does  it  happen,"  said  George,  "that  the  fashions  change  so 
much?  I  should  think  the  fur  would  have  the  same  warmth  at  one  time 
as  another,  and  anybody  who  liked  it  would  be  willing  to  wear  it." 

"  That  is  a  very  good  theory,"  responded  the  Doctor,  with  a  smile, 
"  but  is  very  far  from  the  practice.  The  most  of  the  fur  in  the  world, 
after  it  is  taken  from  the  animals  that  produce  it,  is  worn  for  ornament 
rather  than  for  warmth.  Customs  and  fashions  change  in  fur  just  as  in 
everything  else,  and  the  desire  for  any  particular  kind  is  largely  founded 
on  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  it.  Did  you  ever  hear  of  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Fur  Company  ?" 


44: 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


"  I  have  read  about  it,"  the  youth  answered,  "  that  it  was  a  very  rich 
Company,  founded  a  long  time  ago  for  trading  in  furs  in  the  northern 
part  of  this  country." 

"  That  is  correct,"  said  the  Doctor.     "  The  Hudson's  Bay  Company 
was  chartered  by  King  Charles  II.  of  England,  two  hundred  years  ago,  and 
continued  to  exist  till  1869,  when  its  rights  were  bought  up  by  the  Gov- 
ernment of  Canada.     It  still  car- 
ries on  the  fur -trade,  but  has  no 
monopoly  over  it,  and  no  owner- 
ship of  the  country,  with  authority 
to  make  and  enforce  its  own  laws. 
"  Now  this  Company  for  a  long 
time  had  the  full  control  of  the 
fur-trade,  and  made  the  fash- 
ions to  suit  itself.     It  would 
send  orders  to  Canada  that 
certain  animals  were  not  to 
be  caught  for  five  years. 
By  the  end  of  that  time, 
the  fur  would  be   very 
scarce   and   dear   in  the 
London  market,  and  con- 
sequently   beyond     the 
reach  of  all  but  the  rich- 
est people.    It  would  be~ 
come  the  fashion,  and  as 
;'i  '      soon  as  it  had  reached  a  very 
high  figure  the  order  would  go  out  for 
that  particular  kind  of  fur  to  be  brought 
to  market.     Meantime  the -animals  that 
produced  it  would  grow  very  plentiful,  by  reason  of 
HUDSON'S  BAY  COM-     tneir   exemption  from   slaughter  for  five   years,  and 
PANT'S  AGENT.         great  quantities  would  be  obtained.     The   Company 
would  take  care  not  to  spoil  the  market  by  throwing 
in  too  great  an  amount,  and  so  the  price  would  be  kept  up  for  several 
years.     While  this  was  going  on,  some  other  kind  of  fur  would  be  ex- 
empt, and  become  scarce  and  dear  in  its  turn." 

One  of  the  boys  wished  to  know  if  the  furs  were  taken  by  the  white 
men  exclusively. 

"'Certainly  not,"  said  the  Doctor.     "The  Indians,  being  the  original 


THE  HUDSON'S  BAY  FUR  COMPANY. 


45 


inhabitants,  were  not  deprived  of  their  rights  in  the  game  in  the  forest, 
but  on  the  contrary  were  encouraged  to  hunt  for  it.     In  winter  they  were 


FUR-TRADERS    ONE    HUNDRED    TEARS    AGO. 


occupied  in  trapping  and  hunting,  and  in  the  spring  they  came  to  the 
Company's  posts  with  their  furs.  They  generally  travelled  in  large  par- 
ties, and  were  met  outside  the  posts  by  the  Company  agents.  A  week  or 
so  before  their  arrival  notice  was  sent  to  the  fort,  so  that  the  agents  could 
be  ready  for  them." 

"Do  they  use  money  or  goods  in  trading  with  the  Indians?"  Harry 
inquired. 

"Nearly  all  the  purchases  of  furs  were  made  with  goods,"  the  Doctor 
answered,  "and  very  little  money  changed  hands.  The  trading  was  con- 
ducted in  a  way  that  would  hardly  be  proper  in  a  large  city,  but  was 


46  THE   YOUNG   NIMEODS. 

very  necessary  when  the  Indians  were  to  be  dealt  with.  Only  a  few  of 
them  were  admitted  to  the  fort  at  a  time,  and  whenever  a  transaction 
was  going  on  between  a  trader  and  an  Indian  somebody  was  in  sight 
with  a  loaded  rifle  ready  to  fire  on  the  red  man  in  case  he  displayed  any 
hostility. 

"The  Indians,  after  being  admitted  to  the  fort,  are  restricted  to  a  sin- 
gle apartment,  called  the  Indian-room.  From  this  they  are  let,  two  at  a 
time,  into  the  trade-room,  which  has  a  window  with  an  iron  grating  suf- 


ARRIVAL    OF   INDIAN    HUNTERS. 


ficiently  large  to  permit  the  passage  of  articles  of  ordinary  size,  bat  too 
small  for  an  Indian  to  strain  himself  through.  The  traders  sit  behind 
this  grating,  and  one  of  them  has  a  rifle  ready  for  use  in  case  of  necessity. 
Indians  are  apt  to  become  excited  in  the  course  of  a  commercial  trans- 


TRADING   WITH  THE   INDIANS. 


47 


action,  and  sometimes  they  demonstrate  their  ideas  of  traffic  by  shooting 
those  they  are  dealing  with.  This  propensity  is  checked  by  the  arrange- 
ment I  have  described. 

"I  remarked  that  the  trade  was  conducted  on  the  barter  principle, 
the  goods  of  the  Company  being  given  for  skins  brought  by  the  Indians. 
It  is  only  within  the  past  few  years  that  money  has  been  used  in  traffic, 
and  even  now  it  has  not  been  adopted  as  the  standard  of  value.  The 


TKADE-UOOM    IN    BUSINESS    HOL'KS. 


standard  of  transactions  is  the  beaver-skin,  and  all  prices  arc  regulated 
by  it." 

"  Do  they  say  a  thing  is  worth  so  many  beaver-skins,  just  as  we  would 
name  its  price  in  dollars  ?" 

"Exactly.  When  the  price  of  anything  in  skins  is  mentioned  beavers 
are  always  understood.  Thus,  a  horse  may  be  worth  seventy-five  skins, 
a  gun  fifteen  skins,  a  blanket  ten,  and  so  on,  through  the  list  of  articles 
that  are  under  negotiation." 

"  But  what  if  an  Indian  has  no  beaver-skins  to  offer,  though  he  may 
have  those  of  other  animals.  What  can  he  do  then  ?" 


48 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


"His  other  skins  .are  taken  at  their  proportionate  value.  A  silver-fox 
may  be  estimated  at  four  beavers,  and  would  be  counted  as  four  skins ; 

on  the  other  hand,  it  might  take 
two  martens  to  equal  a  beaver,  and 
so  a  marten  would  be  counted  as 
half  a  skin." 

"  The  men  that  go  there  to  live 
must  find  it  rather  lonesome,"  said 
one  of  the  boys.  "  They  must  be 
scattered  over  a  very  wide  coun- 
try, and  see  but  few  new  faces  in 
the  course  of  a  year." 

"  That  is  quite  true,"  the  Doc- 
answered.  "  The  territory  under  the 
Company's  control,  previous  to  the  sale 
to  Government  in  1869,  was  estimated  at 
4,500,000  square  miles,  which  is  one-third 
greater  than  the  whole  of  Europe." 

"  How  many  men    are  there  to  look 
after  all  this  territory  ?" 

"I  am  not  certain  as  to  the  number, 
but  think  it  is  not  more  than  5000.  The 
territory  is  divided  into  four  great  depart- 
ments, and  these  are  subdivided  into  fifty-three  districts,  each  district  be- 
ing under  the  control  of  a  supervising  officer,  who  has  charge  of  all  the 
business  of  the  establishment.  Then  the  districts  have  smaller  divisions, 
with  trading-posts,  where  there  is  an  officer  with  a  staff  of  mechanics  and 
other  laborers,  all  the  way  from  two  to  forty.  The  discipline  is  very 
rigid,  and  resembles  that  of  an  army  more  than  anything  else. 

"  The  posts  are  from  fifty  to  three  hundred  miles  apart,  and  consequent- 
ly there  is  not  much  communication  between  them.  Once  a  year  the  mail 
is  sent  from  Fort  Garry,  the  most  southerly  fort,  to  La  Pierre's  house  and 
Fort  Yukon,  in  the  far  North.  The  distance  is  more  than  three  thousand 
miles,  and  the  mail  is  carried  on  sledges  drawn  by  dogs,  four  of  them  to  a 
sledge.  Two  sledges  start  in  company,  and  sometimes  three,  and  they  trav- 
el about  forty  miles  a  day,  along  the  frozen  rivers  and  through  the  for- 
ests. From  the  principal  posts  along  the  route  branch  mails  are  sent  off, 
and  the  Great  Northern  Packet  goes  on  and  on,  leaving  its  bundles  here 
and  there,  till  at  last  it  reaches  the  end  of  its  journey,  three  months  after 
its  departure.  You  can  be  sure  that  the  mail  is  very  welcome  to  the  men 


READING    THE    NEWS. 


THE  HUDSON'S  BAY  FUR  COMPANY. 


49 


THE  GHKAT  NORTH- 
ERN PACKET. 

pers  that  are  car- 
ried to  the  inte- 
rior are  read  and 
re-read  till  they 
drop  to  pieces." 
"  How  do 
they  transport 
the  goods  and 
furs  to  and 


from  the  trading-posts?     In  such 
a  thinly  settled  country  they  can't 
have  any  good  roads." 

"  They  are  gener- 
ally carried  in  boats 
along  the   rivers; 
and  if  there  are 
no  rivers  that  can 
be    utilized,  the 
transportation   is 
done    on    horse- 
back,   or       with 
light  carts." 

"  But      don't 

have  a  great  many  falls  on  the  rivers  where 
boats  cannot  go  safely  ?" 

"  Certainly  they  do,  and  they  go  around  them  by 
making  portages,  as  it  is  called.     They  have  boats 
that  can  carry  a  cargo  of  between  three  and  four 
tons,  and  each  boat  has  a  crew  of  nine  men.    When 
they  come  to  a  cataract  that  cannot  be  passed  by 
the    boat,  the    latter    is     hauled 
ashore,  and  both  boat  and  cargo 
are  carried   around    the   obstruc- 
tion.    Then,  too,  it  is  sometimes 
necessary  to  cross  a  height  of  land 
between    two     streams,  and    the 
same     operation     is    performed. 
The  cargo  is  in  packages,  weigh- 
ing one  hundred 
-o-j    pounds  each,  and 
the  cargo  for  a 
boat  consists  of 
seventy -five    of 
these     packages 
or     pieces.      In 
crossing  a  port- 
age, each  man  is 
supposed   to    be 
able     to     carry 


at   the    posts,  and 
the    few    newspa- 


50 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


two  of  these  packages :  he  arranges  them  so  that  the  weight  lies  along 
his  back  from  the  crown  of  his  head  to  the  hips.  A  broad  band  of 
leather,  called  a  '  portage  strap,'  passes  across  his  forehead,  and  the  ends  of 


MAKING   A   PORTAGE. 


the  strap  are  brought  together  to  hold  the  pieces  in  place.  Thus  burdened, 
they  go  steadily  along;  and  as  they  are  all  robust  and  healthy,  the  work 
evidently  agrees  with  them." 

This  conversation  occurred  partly  while  Joe  was  arranging  his  musk- 
rat  traps,  and  partly  as  they  walked  slowly  along  by  the  bank  of  the  brook. 
Suddenly  Harry  started,  as  though  he  had  been  bitten  by  a  snake,  and 
sliouted, 

"  See  there !     See  there !     What's  that  ?" 


THE   RABBIT   AT   HOME. 


The  rest  of  the  party  looked  in  the  direction  where  Harry  pointed. 
A  rabbit  was  fleeing  across  the  snow  as  fast  as  his  legs  would  carry  him, 
and  in  a  very  few  seconds  he  had  disappeared  over  the  brow  of  a  hillock. 
The  boys  wished  to  go  in  pursuit  of  him,  but  were  checked  by  Joe  and 
the  Doctor.  "  It  would  be 
of  no  use,"  said  the  for- 
mer, "to  try  to  overtake 
him.  He  can  run  farther 
in  an  hour  than  you  could 
in  three,  and  it  is  quite  like- 
ly that  by  this  time  he  is 
safe  in  his  den.  We  might 
dig  him  out  if  we  knew 
where  he  lives;  but  as  he 
has  not  given  us  his  street 
arid  number,  and  we  have 
no  picks  and  shovels,  our 
chance  of  getting  him  is 
very  slight ;  besides,  he  is 
of  very  little  use,  as  his  fur 
does  not  bring  enough  in 
the  market  to  pay  for  sav- 
ing it,  and  the  meat  is  not 
the  best  in  the  world." 

In  accordance  with  Joe's 

advice,  the  rabbit  was  not  followed,  somewhat  to  Harry's  disappointment, 
who  hoped  to  see  what  kind  of  a  dwelling  the  little  fellow  had.  The 
Doctor  explained  to  him  that  the  rabbit  generally  makes  his  warren  in  a 
hill-side,  and  hollows  it  out  in  such  a  way  that  the  rain  cannot  possibly 
disturb  him.  "First  it  has  a  sharp  descent,"  he  said,  "and  then  it  rises 
rapidly  and  narrows  somewhat.  At  the  top  it  is  enlarged,  so  as  to  give 
plenty  of  room  for  the  head  of  the  house  and  his  family,  which  is  gen- 
erally pretty  numerous.  When  pursued  by  man,  or  fox,  or  other  animal, 
the  rabbit  makes  the  best  possible  speed  for  home,  and  when  he  is  once 
inside  his  doors,  he  is  safe  from  the  majority  of  intruders." 


A    RABBIT    WARHEN. 


52  THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

A   FOX-HUNT. 

THE  walk  was  continued,  and  more  traps  were  visited,  till  the  party 
had  made  a  circuit  of  not  far  from  five  miles.  They  had  crossed 
from  the  head  of  the  brook  they  ascended  to  the  head  of  another,  which 
they  followed  to  its  entrance  into  the  river;  and  when  all  the  traps  had 
been  examined  they  were  not  more  than  a  mile  from  home.  Experienced 
hunters  endeavor  to  arrange  their  traps  in  such  a  way  as  to  avoid  long 
walks  to  go  to  or  from  the  scene  of  their  operations ;  they  always  like  to 
set  them  in  circuits,  so  that  the  end  of  their  tour  brings  them  near  the 
starting-point. 

It  was  George's  turn  to  find  something  exciting,  and  he  found  it. 
Just  as  they  were  leaving  the  last  trap,  he  saw  an  animal  running  leisure- 
ly over  the  hill,  not  a  hundred  yards  away.  It  was  crossing  a  small  clear- 
ing in  the  forest,  and  cantered  easily  along,  as  though  out  for  a  pleasant 
promenade. 

George  was  about  to  shout,  but  the  Doctor  checked  him,  as  he  had 
seen  the  strange  object  a  moment  before  it  came  in  the  range  of  the 
youth's  eyes. 

"  That's  a  fox,"  whispered  the  Doctor ;  "  keep  still,  and  see  how  grace- 
fully he  runs." 

The  Doctor  stood  still,  and  so  did  Joe,  and  they  made  a  signal  for  the 
boys  to  do  likewise.  All  four  were  as  motionless  as  statues,  and  evident- 
ly the  fox  did  not  see  them,  as  he  circled  around  the  clearing  and  passed 
within  a  dozen  yards  of  the  boys.  After  making  this  circuit,  he  disap- 
peared in  the  forest  at  right  angles  to  the  way  he  came. 

"  What  a  beautiful  head  he  has !"  said  George,  after  the  fox  had  gone. 
"His  eyes  are  clear  and  bright,  his  nose  is  pointed,  and  the  position  of  his 
ears  gives  him  an  expression  of  cunning.  I  have  seen  his  picture  before, 
but  never  knew  how  handsome  he  really  is." 

"'As  cunning  as  a  fox,'  is  an  old  adage,"  Uncle  Joe  remarked,  "and 
you  have  just  seen  an  instance  of  the  animal's  cunning." 


"AS  CUNNING  AS  A  FOX."  53 


KEYNARUS    PORTRAIT. 


"  How  was  that  ?"  Harry  asked. 

"  The  turning  he  made  in  the  clearing,"  Joe  replied.  "  It  was  to 
tlirow  the  dogs  off  the  scent.  Listen !  there  they  come ;  I  hear  their 
barking.  Stand  perfectly  still,  and  see  what  they  will  do." 

The  baying  of  the  dogs  was  every  moment  more  and  more  distinct, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  four  hounds  came  out  of  the  forest  ton  the  track  of 
the  fox.  On  they  went  across  the  clearing  as  fast 'as  they  could  run,  and 
away  from  the  track. 

Very  soon  they  found  they  were  off  the  scent,  and  back  they  came  to 
the  clearing.  They  followed  the  fence  the  wrong  way,  and  made  the  en- 
tire circuit  of  the  open  space  before  they  found  the  track  and  renewed 
the  scent.  They  lost  some  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes  by  this  manoeuvre 
of  the  fox,  and  it  is  quite  possible,  as  the  Doctor  suggested,  that  this  trick 
gave  him  time  to  get  to  a  place  of  safety. 

"  Does  he  have  a  den  like  the  rabbit  ?"  one  of  the  boys  asked. 

"Yes;  he  lives  underground,  but  does  not  always  make  his  own  bur- 
row. He  prefers  to  appropriate  the  deserted  den  of  a  rabbit  or  badger, 
which  he  enlarges  to  suit  his  own  taste  and  make  room  for  his  family. 
Here  he  brings  chickens  from  the  farm-houses,  or  any  other  plunder  he 
can  secure,  and  he  has  the  reputation  of  being  a  good  provider  for  his 
young.  And  he  has  not  one  but  several  retreats  scattered  over  a  consid- 
erable area,  so  that  if  he  is  pursued  he  may  retire  for  safety.  Some- 


54  THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

times  these  retreats  will  be  miles  apart,  and  known  to  several  foxes,  who 
seem  to  consider  them  common  property." 

"Why  did  you  tell  us  to  stand  perfectly  still  when  the  fox  came  in 
sight  ?" 

"  Because  I  wanted  you  to  see  the  fox  as  closely  as  possible.  A  mov- 
ing object  attracts  his  attention,  but  a  still  one  does  not.  If  you  remain 


THK    FOX    AND    HIS    FAMILY. 


motionless  in  full  view  of  him,  he  may  take  you  for  a  stump  of  a  tree 
and  come  quite  near,  provided  the  wind  is  blowing  from  him  to  you  and 
does  not  give  him  the  scent.  One  morning  I  was  out  in  the  field,  and 
saw  a  fox  searching  among  the  logs  for  his  breakfast.  I  stood  perfectly 
still,  and  he  did  not  observe  me  at  all;  he  came  within  ten  feet  of  me,  as 
the  wind  happened  to  be  right,  and  I  could  have  shot  him  easily  with  a 
pistol.  Finally  I  moved  my  arm  suddenly,  and  he  scampered  away  at 
the  best  possible  speed." 


HUNTING   THE   FOX   WITH   HOUNDS. 


"  Do  you  have  regular  fox-hunts  here,  Doctor,  such  as  we  read  about 
in  books?"  Harry  inquired. 

"No,  not  in  this  part  of  the  country,"  was  the  Doctor's  reply.  "In 
the  Middle  and  Southern  States  the  fox  is  hunted  on  horseback  the  same 
as  in  England,  but  the  North  is  too  hilly,  and  has  too  many  forests  to  per- 
mit that  kind  of  sport.  He  is  hunted  here  with  dogs,  as  you  have  seen 
this  morning,  and  the  hunter,  after  arousing  the  fox,  remains  quietly  at 
the  place  of  starting,  and  shoots  the  animal  on  his  return.  The  fox  gen- 
erally travels  in  a  circle,  and  is  prettv  sure  to  come  back  to  the  place  he 
left. 

"England  is  the  great  country  for  the  pursuit  of  fox-hunting  as  a 
fashionable  pastime.  English  gen- 
tlemen keep  large  packs  of  fox- 
hounds, for  which  enormous  prices 
are  often  paid,  and  great  attention 
is  given  to  the  rearing  and  train- 
ing of  horses  for  hunting  purposes. 
Sometimes  the  cost  is  so  heavy  that 
several  gentlemen  combine  and  take 


0 


FOX-HOUNDS    AT    HOME. 


turns  in  maintaining  the  hounds  for 

a  single  district,  and  also  share  the 

expense  of  the  general  equipment  for 

hunting   operations.      From   twelve 

to  twenty  hounds  form  a  pack,  and 

their  aggregate  value  may  be  fairly 

estimated  at  five   thousand  dollars. 

Single  dogs  have  been  sold  for  four 

or  five  hundred  dollars,  and  sometimes  even  higher  prices  than  these  have 

been  obtained.     But  the  cost  of  the  hounds  and  their  support  is  a  small 

item  compared  with  that  of  maintaining  a  stud  of  horses  suitable  for  the 

field,  and  many  a  man  has  dissipated  a  small  fortune  in  the  pleasures  of 

the  chase. 

"Fox-hunting  in  the  Southern  States  of  America  is  followed  on  the 
general  principles  of  the  sport  in  England ;  but  there  is  less  attention  to 
details,  and  the  hounds  and  horses  are  not  maintained  at  so  great  expense. 
A  day  is  appointed  for  the  hunt,  and  the  place  of  meeting  is  chosen. 
Ladies,  as  well  as  gentlemen,  join  in  the  sport,  and  when  all  are  assem- 
bled at  'the  meet,'  the  scene  is  a  lively  one.  Every  gentleman  sends  his 
hounds,  and  there  is  usually  a  negro  from  each  plantation  to  act  as  '  whip- 
per-in,' or  manager  of  the  dogs. 


56 


THE   YOUNG  NIMBODS. 


"  The  hounds  are  started  out  to  find  a  fox,  and  as  soon  as  they  get  on 
the  trail  of  one  their  baying  resounds  through  the  forest  or  across  the 
open  country.  When  he  is  roused  up  from  his  slumbers  —  for  he  does 


MEETING    FOR   A    FOX-HUNT. 


nearly  all  his  sleeping  in  the  day,  and  devotes  the  night  to  his  depreda- 
tions— he  starts  for  the  nearest  thicket  or  cover.  The  hunters  are  kept  in 
waiting  till  the  signal  comes  from  the  master  of  the  hunt  that  the  chase 
has  fairly  begun,  and  then  the  excitement  shows  itself. 

"  Over  fences,  across  brooks,  through  thickets,  among  fields,  under  the 
trees,  the  fox  leads  the  dogs,  and  the  dogs  lead  the  hunters.  Mishaps  are 
frequent,  and  every  year  there  is  a  record  somewhere  of  broken  bones 
and  other  accidents  more  or  less  serious.  In  England  it  happens  not  in- 
frequently that  some  member  of  the  nobility  ends  his  fox-hunting  with 
a  broken  neck;  but  as  the  supply  of  noblemen  is  abundant,  the  sport 
goes  on  without  restriction.  In  America  there  is  less  attempt  at  leaping 


MISHAPS   OF  THE   HUNT.  57 

fences  and  broad  brooks  and  ditches,  but  there  is  quite  enough  of  it  to 
make  the  chase  exciting  and  dangerous.  One  of  the  awkward  points  in 
a  fox-hunt  is  when  your  horse  stops  suddenly  on  the  edge  of  a  ditch  or 
brook,  and  sends  you  plunging  over  his  head  into  the  water.  Ditches 
and  brooks  are  famous  for  having  mud  at  the  bottom,  and  sometimes  the 
unlucky  plunger  finds  himself  plastered  from  head  to  foot  with  a  sticky 
mass  that  makes  him  anything  but  handsome. 

"  On  a  hot  day,  a  badly  trained  horse  has  a  fondness  for  lying  down 
in  the  first  stream  he  comes  to,  for  the  sake  of  cooling  himself  in  the 
water.  The  unlucky  rider  of  such  a  beast  loses  for  the  moment  all  in- 


IN   FULL    CHASE. 


terest  in  the  hunt,  and  devotes  his  energies  to  saving  himself  from  a 
wetting.  Meantime  the  fox  is  going  over  the  hills  and  far  away,  and 
the  more  fortunate  hunters  are  leaving  the  victim  of  the  brook  in  the 
background. 

"Many  an  unskilled  hunter  comes  to  grief  at  fences,  and  a  good  many 


58  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

skilled  ones  as  well.  To  'take  a  fence'  or  a  gate  requires  a  good  horse 
and  a  good  rider;  and  these  are  not  always  found  together.  I  was  once 
in  a  hunting-party  where  the  most  daring  rider  was  a  lady.  She  'took 
the  fence'  several  times  in  succession,  while  the  more  timorous,  or  per- 
haps not  so  well -mounted,  gentlemen  preferred  to  open  a  gate  and  pass 


"TAKING  THE  FENCE." 

quietly  through.  The  worst  thing  in  the  way  of  fences  is  one  that  has  a 
wet  ditch  on  the  side  opposite  from  where  you  jump,  and  you  often  take 
a  leap  and  find  yourself  in  a  heap  in  the  water,  and  perhaps  with  your 
horse  on  top  of  yon. 

"  The  comical  side  of  a  fox-hunt  is  as  interesting  as  the  sportive  one ; 
and  if  there  are  many  verdant  gentlemen  in  the  party,  and  they  are 
mounted  on  unruly  horses,  there  will  certainly  be  some  laughable  incidents. 
Occasionally  a  frightened  rider  deserts  his  saddle,  and  clings  to  the  inane 
or  neck  of  his  steed,  and  thus  gives  the  animal  an  excellent  chance  to 
pitch  him  headlong  at  will.  The  unfortunate  hero  of  the  overthrow  vows 


A   FOX'S   TRICKS. 


59 


that  he  will  never  show  himself  again  at  a  fox-hunt — certainly  not  till 
he  has  a  proper  horse  to  ride. 

"  The  fox  displays  a  great  deal  of  sagacity  in  eluding  his.  pursuers. 
A  volume  might  be  filled  with  the  stories  of  his  cunning,  and  even  then 
the  testimony  concerning  it  would  be  far  from  exhausted.  I  will  give 
you  a  few  of  them. 

"  There  was  once  in  South  Carolina  a  fox  that  baffled  the  hunters  many 
times  in  succession.  They  would  start  him  in  the  forest  where  he  lived, 
and  he  always  ran  to  a  certain  hill,  and  on  this  hill  the  trail  was  invariably 
lost.  'No  matter  what  the  weather  was,  or  where  he  was  started,  the  chase 
had  to  be  given  up  below  this  hill.  Everybody  was  puzzled,  and  finally 
a  gentleman  determined  to  solve  the  mystery. 

"He  went  there  one  morning  when  a  hunting-party  was  about  to  start, 


HAD    RIDIXG. 


and  concealed  himself  in  the  top  of  a  tree  near  the  spot  where  the  scent 
was  usually  lost.  Here  he  watched  and  waited  some  time,  and  at  last 
heard  the  baying  of  the  hounds.  On  they  came,  with  Reynard  a  few 
hundred  yards  in  advance. 

"  He  rose  over  the  top  of  the  hill,  looked  around  to  see  how  near  the 
dogs  were,  and  then  trotted  about  half-way  down  the  slope  to  a  large 
rock  that  had  a  depression  in  the  centre.  A  vigorous  jump  landed  him 
on  the  rock,  and  he  lay  down  in  the  hollow. 

"As  the  dogs  ran  down  the  hill,  their  speed  was  naturally  quickened; 
they  went  bounding  along  past  the  rock,  and  disappeared  in  the  valley 
below.  As  soon  as  they  were  fairly  out  of  eight,  the  fox  rose  slowly  to 


60  THE  YOUNG  NIMEODS. 

see  if  the  coast  was  clear,  and  then  jumped  from  the  rock,  and  followed 
his  original  track  back  to  his  forest  home. 

"  In  another  instance,  there  was  a  very  large  field  where  a  gray  fox 
could  be  started  at  any  time,  but  they  always  lost  him  at  a  certain  plan- 
tation two  or  three  miles  away.  The  trail  would  be  perfectly  clear  up  to 
a  corner  of  a  field  close  to  a  forest,  and  from  that  point  no  trace  of  it 
could  be  found.  The  thing  happened  so  often  that  it  was  much  discussed, 
and  a  great  many  theories  were  advanced.  Some  of  the  superstitious 
people  in  that  part  of  the  country  began  to  believe  that  the  fox  had  ex- 
traordinary powers,  and  they  looked  on  him  with  so  much  veneration  that 
they  refused  to  join  in  hunting  him. 

"The  hunters  began  to  be  ashamed  of  themselves  for  being  baffled  so 
often,  and  the  dogs  caught  the  infection,  and  did  not  run  with  the  eager- 
ness they  displayed  when  pursuing  other  foxes.  The  mystery  was  cleared 
up  by  a  gentleman  who  went  to  the  field  in  question  and  watched  the 
movements  of  the  cunning  fox. 

"  The  animal  came  on  a  little  in  advance  of  the  hounds,  and  when 
near  the  corner  he  mounted  the  fence  and  walked  along  the  top  of  it  to 
the  corner.  Of  course  he  was  expected  to  jump  off  and  run  into  the 
forest ;  but  this  was  precisely  what  he  did  not  do. 

"  There  was  a  dead  tree  in  the  field  about  sixteen  feet  from  the  fence ; 
it  leaned  over  a  little,  and  there  was  a  large  knot  on  the  trunk  about  ten 
feet  from  the  ground.  Running  along  the  fence  to  get  the  necessary 
momentum,  the  fox  gave  a  spring  that  carried  him  to  the  tree,  where  he 
grasped  the  knot  with  his  paws,  and  then  climbed  into  the  top  and  disap- 
peared. He  remained  there  quietly  till  the  hunting-party  had  gone  past 
and  were  out  of  hearing,  and  then  calmly  descended  and  went  home. 

"  The  gentleman  was  so  well  pleased  with  the  sagacity  of  the  fox  that 
lie  kept  the  matter  a  secret.  Many  and  many  a  time  the  fox  disappeared 
there  in  the  same  way,  till  at  last  somebody  else  suspected  that  the  dead 
tree  had  something  to  do  with  the  mystery ;  so  he  cut  it  down  one  day 
just  before  a  hunt  was  to  come  off,  and  then  the  fox  was  captured. 

"  The  chase  of  the  fox  continues  till  his  strength  is  exhausted,  and  he 
is  run  down  by  the  hounds  and  captured.  It  is  a  great  point  with  hunters 
to  be  '  in  at  the  death '  in  a  fox-hunt;  the  tail  or  '  brush  '  is  generally  given 
to  the  first  lady  who  arrives  on  the  spot;  and  if  there  are  no  ladies,  the 
most  gallant  and  foremost  of  the  gentlemen  receives  it.  The  dogs  are 
allowed  to  tear  the  body  of  the  poor  fox  in  order  to  encourage  them  in 
future  hunts,  and  the  sport  generally  ends  by  the  assemblage  of  the  party 
at  a  convenient  place  for  an  out-door  lunch." 


ENDURANCE   OF  THE   FOX. 


61 


George  asked  how  far  a  fox  could  run  under  such  circumstances,  and 
how  long  a  time  was  usually  required  for  his  capture. 

"That  is  not  very  easy  to  say,"  the  Doctor  replied;  "there  is  an  in- 


"iN   AT   THE   DEATH." 

stance  on  record  in  England  of  a  fox  that  ran  forty-five  miles  in  five  hours, 
and  another  that  ran  a  little  more  than  sixty  miles  in  six  hours  and  a  half. 
In  Virginia  a  fox  has  been  known  to  run  fifty  miles  and  then  escape,  and 
runs  of  twenty-five  and  thirty  miles  are  not  at  all  uncommon.  Generally, 
however,  a  hunt  is  concluded  at  the  end  of  eight  or  ten  miles,  and  some- 
times the  run  is  so  short  that  the  dogs  and  hunters  are  not  fairly  warmed 
to  their  work  before  the  animal  is  taken  and  the  sport  is  over. 

"  The  fox  displays  quite  as  much  cunning  in  hunting  his  game  as  he 
does  in  escaping  from  those  who  are  trying  to  make  game  of  him.  He 
will  lie  for  hours  in  the  bushes  at  the  edge  of  a  pond  where  there  are 
ducks  or  geese,  and  by  waving  the  bushy  end  of  his  tail  he  excites  their 
curiosity,  and  causes  them  to  come  near  enough  to  enable  him  to  seize 


62  THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 

one  of  them  in  his  jaws.  He  takes  the  unlucky  bird  by  the  neck,  throws 
the  body  over  his  shoulder,  and  darts  off  for  his  home,  where  his  family 
is  waiting  for  him.  If  this  trick  fails,  he  will  take  a  bunch  of  grass  or 
moss  in  his  jaws  so  as  to  cover  his  nose,  which  is  the  only  part  of  him 
above  the  water;  thus  disguised,  he  swims  slowly  into  the  flock,  and  they 
never  suspect  their  danger  till  it  is  too  late.  Sometimes  he  will  pretend 
to  be  dead,  and  he  has  been  known  to  lie  perfectly  still  while  a  piece  of 
burning  paper  was  held  so  close  to  his  nose  that  the  end  of  it  was  blis- 
tered. 

"There  is  an  old  story  of  a  farmer  who  found  a  fox  in  his  poultry- 
yard  one  morning  that  had  eaten  so  heartily  of  the  chickens  that  he  was 


unable  to  get  out  through  the  hole  where  he  had  entered.  He  lay  there 
to  all  appearances  perfectly  dead.  The  farmer  kicked  him,  and  turned 
him  over  two  or  three  times  with  his  foot,  and  then  seized  him  by  the 
tail  and  flung  him  outside.  He  was  much  surprised  to  see  the  fox  come 
suddenly  to  life  and  run  away  to  the  forest,  and  you  may  be  sure  that  the 
cunning  fellow  was  careful  not  to  eat  too  much  the  next  time  he  entered 
a  poultry-yard. 

"  Foxes  that  live  by  the  sea-side  are  very  fond  of  oysters  and  clams, 
and  they  break  the  hard  shells  by  throwing  them  into  the  air  and  allow- 
ing them  to  fall  on  the  rocks.  They  have  been  known  to  catch  crabs 
and  lobsters  by  putting  their  tails  into  the  water  where  they  could  be 


TAKING    AN   AIRING. 


63 


seized,  and  then  dragging  their  prey  to  the  shore.  Sometimes  the  fox 
miscalculates  the  strength  of  his  victim,  and  emerges  from  his  experiment 
in  fishing  with  a  portion  of  his  tail  bitten  off;  but  this  is  a  very  rare  oc- 
currence, as  the  fox  is  too  proud  of  the  fine  appearance  of  his  brush  to 
run  the  risk  of  a  serious  injury  to  it." 


THE    FOX    FAMILY    ABIIOAU. 


Cl  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  COUNTRY  STORE.— A  TRIP  TO  THE  MOUNTAINS. 

E  boys  were  much  delighted  with  their  morning's  sport.  The 
traps  had  given  them  a  mink  and  a  mnsk-rat — not  a  very  formida- 
ble prize — and  Joe  remarked  that  they  should  hope  for  better  luck  next 
time.  They  had  seen  and  learned  a  great  deal  that  was  new  to  them, 
and  besides,  their  appetites  had  been  sharpened  to  a  condition  of  great 
keenness  by  their  long  walk  in  the  pure  air  of  the  morning. 

They  went  out  with  Joe  the  next  day  and  the  next,  to  visit  his  traps 
and  assist  him  in  bringing  home  his  captures.  They  hunted  squirrels 
in  the  forest,  but  without  any  success  till  near  the  end  of  the  week,  when 
they  managed  to  shoot  one  on  the  tree  where  they  had  practised  the 
process  of  smoking  out  on  the  day  after  their  arrival.  They  became 
interested  in  the  ways  of  the  country,  and  used  to  accompan}'  the  farm- 
er's boy  when  he  gave  the  inhabitants  of  the  barn-yard  their  breakfastv 
Horses  and  cattle  assembled  at  the  foot  of  the  ladder  leading  to  the  corn- 
crib,  and  when  the  youth  appeared,  with  his  arms  filled  with  ears  of  corn, 
there  was  an  impatient  raising  of  heads  and  jostling  of  sides  which  greatly 
amused  the  visitors  from  the  city. 

One  afternoon  they  strolled  to  the  village,  a  couple  of  miles  away,  and 
spent  an  hour  in  the  country  store,  where  several  of  the  villagers  were 
congregated.  Squire  Tappan,  the  lawyer  of  the  neighborhood,  was  seated 
by  the  stove  discussing  politics  with  an  old  farmer,  who  was  not  of  the 
squire's  party,  greatly  to  the  edification  of  Sam  Folsom,  who  hugged  the 
stove  on  the  other  side,  and  took  in  the  heat  of  the  glowing  fire  along 
with  that  of  the  discussion.  There  was  a  steady  buzz  of  conversation  in 
other  parts  of  the  establishment,  and  especially  at  the  counter,  where  one 
woman  was  examining  a  codfish,  and  descanting  on  its  demerits,  and  an- 
other and  younger  one  was  purchasing  a  few  yards  of  ribbon.  Deacon 
Sanborn  hesitated  over  a  curry-comb  ;  and  the  deacon's  youngest  boy,  left 
to  himself  for  a  few  minutes,  said  sweet  things  to  Lizzie  Webster,  who 
was  not  far  from  his  own  age.  The  shelves  were  packed  with  boxes, 


A  RURAL   SCENE. 


65 


crockery,  rolls  of  calico,  and  other  textile  fabrics,  cans  of  tea,  and  jars  of 
pickles,  and  the  rafters  were  hung  with  a  varied  assortment  of  shawls, 


BREAKFAST   AT   THE   COKN-CRIB. 


pails,  brushes,  boots,  pans,  and  the  thousand  and  one  articles  that  go  to 
make  up  the  stock  of  a  store  in  the  country. 

"  What  a  curious  place !"  said  Harry  to  George,  as  they  walked  home- 
ward. "  Uncle  Joe  says  the  country  store  is  the  centre  of  country  life, 
and  I  can  easily  believe  it." 

"Evidently  it  is  the  centre  where  all  can  meet,"  George  replied,  "and 
they  go  there  because  they  have  no  other  place  to  go  to.  It  was  very 
interesting  to  pass  an  hour  in  the  store,  but  I  think  we  should  find  it 
tiresome  after  awhile." 

5 


66 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


"  That  is  the  very  thing  Uncle  Joe  said.  You  see  the  same  men  there 
night  after  night,  and  day  after  day ;  they  tell  the  same  stories  over  and 
over  again,  and  when  anybody  comes  in  who  can  give  them  something 
new,  they  look  on  him  as  a  benefactor.  Just  before  elections  they  get 
much  excited  over  political  questions,  and  the  Doctor  says  there  is  no 
place,  not  even  excepting  Congress,  where  the  politics  of  the  country  are 
more  thoroughly  discussed  than  in  a  country  store." 

"'The  clerk  of  that  store  seemed  to  consider  himself  a  man  of  great 


lit 


THK    COUNTRY    STORK. 


importance,"  George  remarked,  in  his  turn.  "Did  you  notice  how  his 
hair  was  turned  carefully  into  a  twist  above  his  forehead,  and  brushed  in 
front  of  his  ears  as  if  he  had  spent  a  long  time  over  it?" 

"Yes,  but  he  didn't  think  more  of  himself  than  the  doctor  did — the 
man  with  the  plaid  wrapper  around  his  neck,  and  thin  whiskers  in  front 
of  his  ears.  He  is  a  great  man  in  his  own  estimation,  and  probably  in  that 
of  his  neighbors.  When  we  get  home  we  will  ask  Uncle  Joe,  and  see 
what  he  says  about  him." 

Commenting  on  the  new  phase  of  life  they  had  seen,  they  continued 


THE   COUNTRY   STORE. 


67 


the5r  way  toward  the  house.  When 
question  of  Uncle  Joe  concerning 
the  characters  they  had  seen  at  the 
store. 

"You  are  quite  right  about  the 
village  doctor,"  said  Joe,  in  response 
to  their  inquiry.  "He  is  a  great 
man  in  his  own  and  his  neighbors' 
opinion,  and  he  is  deserving  of  their 
esteem.  His  name  is  Dr.  Brown, 
and  he  has  never  been  two  hundred 
miles  from  here  in  all  his  life,  but 
he  has  been  a  very  hard  student,  and 
is  an  authority  among  us  for  all  sci- 
entific and  philosophical  questions. 
His  egotism  is  not  at  all  unnatural, 
as  he  has  been  accustomed  from  his 
youth  to  be  considered,  what  he  real- 
ly is,  wiser  than  the  great  majority 
of  those  around  him.  He  is  like  a 
flattery,  and  is  always  addressed  as 


they  arrived  they  asked  the  proposed 


DOCTOR  BROWN. 


TUB  RURAL  CLERK. 

king  who  lives  in  an  atmosphere  of 
'  Majesty,'  so  that  it  is  quite  in  the 
course  of  things  for  him  to  regard 
his  existence  as  a  matter  of  divine 
right." 

"  So  much  for  the  doctor,"  Joe 
continued.  "  Did  you  see  a  jolly, 
smiling,  English -looking  man  they: 
called  Judge?" 

"  Yes,  he  came  in  just  before  we 
left.  We  heard  somebody  call  him 
Judge,  and  that  is  all." 

"I  can  tell  you  a  funny  story 
about  him,"  said  Joe.  "  He  is  liked 
by  everybody  for  his  invariable  good- 
humor,  and  is  famous  for  an  occa- 
sional practical  joke  at  the  expense 
of  his  neighbors. 

"  Three  or  four  winters  ago  there 
was  an  unusual  number  of  idlers 
who  used  to  sit  around  the  stove 


68  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

in  the  store,  and  they  made  so  close  a  circle  that  it  was  not  easy  to  get 
into  it  to  get  warm.  The  store-keeper  and  clerk  found  them  taking  up 
too  much  room,  and  one  day  they  entered  into  a  conspiracy  with  the 
Judge  '  to  give  the  boys  a  raise,'  as  he  expressed  it. 

"It  was  a  cold,  frosty  morning,  with  a  light  snow  that  had  fallen  dur- 
ing the  night.  The  Judge  came  into  the  store  and  approached  the  circle, 

but  no  one  moved  to  make  room 
for  him.  There  was  a  little  space 
directly  in  front  of  the  door  of  the 
stove,  and  the  Judge  took  his  place 
there  arid  opened  the  door  so  that 
more  heat  would  come  into  the 
room. 

" '  Fine  morning  for  rabbit  shoot- 
ing, Judge,'  the  clerk  remarked. 

"  '  Yes,'  the  Judge  answered  ;  '  I 
am  just  going  out  to  try  the  rabbits 
with  the  Colonel.' 

"  Saying  this,  he  took  a  powder 
THE  JUDGE.  canister   from  his  pocket   and   un- 

screwed the  top.  Pouring  a  tea- 
spoonful  of  powder  into  the  palm  of  his  hand,  he  looked  at  it  a  moment, 
commenting  on  its  quality,  and  then  threw  it  on  the  fire. 

"  The  explosion  caused  most  of  the  sitters  to  rise  an  inch  or  two  from 
their  seats,  but  they  quickly  subsided,  some  of  them  muttering  inaudibly 
about  the  disturbance. 

"  '  Stop  that,  Judge,  stop  that !'  said  the  store-keeper.  '  Better  blow  a 
man's  house  up  while  you  are  about  it.  You  ought  to  know  better  than 
to  do  such  a  thing  as  that.' 

"  The  Judge  pretended  to  be  very  angry,  and  flung  the  canister  into 
the  stove. 

"  The  circle  was  broken  up  instantly,  and  never  a  party  of  men  ran  out- 
of-doors  quicker  than  did  that  one.     They  ran  and  ran,  looking  back  over 
their  shoulders  for  the  falling  timbers  of  the  building,  and  not  one  of 
them  stopped  for  a  hundred  yards  at  least.     When  at  a  safe  distance  they 
looked  around,  but  as  they  heard  no  explosion,  and  saw  nothing  dropping, 
they  concluded  there  was  some  mistake  about  it.     The  bravest  of  the 
party  ventured  to  the  door  of  the  store,  peered  in,  and  asked, 
" '  Hain't  she  busted  yet  ?' 
"  There  sat  the  Judge  in  front  of  the  stove,  watching  the  canister  as 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  A   BEAR-HUNT. 


calmly  as  though  it  had  been  a  roasting  potato.  The  only  powder  it  had 
contained  was  the  spoonful  that  was  thrown  into  the  fire  at  first.  The 
rest  of  the  contents  consisted  of  sawdust  and  sand,  and  neither  of  these 
articles  is  considered  dangerous  as  an  explosive." 

.During  the  evening  Joe  informed  the  boys  that  he  had  arranged  to 
take  them  on  a  bear-hunt.  They  were  to  start  early  the  following  morn- 
ing for  a  place  in  the  mountains  about 
thirty  miles  away,  where  a  friend  of 
Joe's  lived  who  had  a  special  fond- 
ness for  hunting  bears.  They  would 
spend  two  or  three  days  there,  and 
he  hoped  they  would  be  fortunate 
enough  to  find  a  bear  or  two  among 
the  rocks  and  trees  of  the  mountains. 
"  And  if  \ve  don't  get  a  bear,"  said 
Joe, "  we  can  console  ourselves  as 
the  man  did  who  took  his  bull  to 
market." 

"  How  was  that  ?" 

"  The  story  goes  that  a  farmer 
once  took  a  young  and  powerful  bull 
to  the  market -town,  ten  or  twelve 
miles  away.  He  undertook  to  lead 
the  animal,  and  was  dragged  over 
fences,  and  across  fields  by  the  un- 
ruly beast,  so  that  he  presented  a 
sorry  spectacle  when  he  reached  the 
market.  Nobody  wanted  to  buy,  and 

he  had  an  equally  lively  time  taking  the  bull  home  again.  Next  day  a 
neighbor  inquired  if  he  had  sold  his  bull. 

'"'No,'  l'e  answered,  'I  didn't  sell  him,  but  I  had  a  splendid  drive  out 
of  him.' 

"And  even  if  we  don't  get  any  bears,  we  will  have  a  fine  drive,  and 
learn  a  good  deal  from  my  old  friend." 

But  the  morning  brought  rain,  or,  rather,  the  rain  began  to  fall  during 
the  night,  and  was  pouring  rapidly  from  the  sky  when  the  boys  rose  with 
the  early  dawn.  It  was  evident  that  a  "thaw"  had  set  in,  and  the  little 
snow  that  lay  on  the  ground  was  soon  melted  away.  The  start  to  the 
mountains  was  postponed,  much  to  the  disappointment  of  the  boys,  who 
had  counted  on  a  charming  ride  through  the  hills. 


•  HAIN'T  SHE  BUSTED  YET?" 


70 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


"Never  mind,  boys,"  said  Joe,  when  he  announced  that  the  journey 
must  be  put  off,  "  we  shall  be  able  to  go  in  a  day  or  two,  and  the  absence 
of  the  snow  in  the  mountains  will  make  our  hunt  all  the  easier." 

The  next  day  the  rain  ceased,  and  the  wind  blew  from  the  north-west, 
and  dried  the  mud  very  fast.  By  the  next  day  the  roads  were  in  good 
condition  for  travelling,  and  our  friends  were  ready  to  start.  The  Doctor 
remained  behind,  and  consequently  the  party  consisted  of  Joe  and  the 


JOB  8    MOUNTAIN    FRIEND. 


boys.  A  light  wagon  drawn  by  a  pair  of  horses  carried  them  rapidly 
through  the  forest  and  over  the  hills,  and  just  at  dusk  they  reached  the 
hunting-lodge,  where  they  were  warmly  welcomed  by  the  owner. 

He  was  a  man  of  a  somewhat  uncertain  age,  with  a  full,  round  face, 
and  a  body  that  appeared  at  first  glance  a  trifle  too  heavy  for  mountain 


A  TRIP  TO  THE   MOUNTAINS. 


71 


climbing.  He  was  dressed  in  a  suit  of  buckskin,  with  fringes  at  the 
seams,  and  when  his  hat  was  off  a  bare  spot  was  revealed  on  the  top  of 
his  head,  like  a  clearing  in  a  forest.  Joe  introduced  him  as  Mr.  Bridg- 
man,  but  addressed  him  familiarly  as  "Jack."  They  were  old  friends, 


A    QUESTION    OF    DINNER. 

and  had  been  together  in  many  a  hunt  through  the  woods  of  Maine  and 
New  Hampshire,  and  in  Canada.  Jack  had  taken  his  abode  for  the  win- 
ter in  the  locality  where  the  boys  found  him,  and  he  had  already  captured 
half  a  dozen  bears,  arid  a  fair  number  of  foxes  and  other  game. 

He  had  followed  Joe's  example  of  the  previous  year,  by  killing  a  bear 
with  cubs,  and  bringing  the  little  fellows  home.  He  gave  one  of  them 
to  a  settler,  who  lived  a  mile  or  two  away  from  Jack's  house,  and  wanted 
the  cub  as  a  playfellow  for  his  boy.  The  boy  and  the  cub  got  along  very 
well  for  a  time,  except  when  there  was  anything  to  be  eaten,  and  then 
there  was  a  dispute  as  to  who  should  have  possession  and  satisfy  his  appe- 
tite first. 

"  They  like  mush  and  milk,"  said  the  settler  one  day,  when  Jack  asked 
him  how  the  boy  and  the  cub  were  prospering,  "and  whenever  a  bowl  of 
it  is  ready  they  have  a  regular  set-to,  and  sometimes  tip  it  over  before 


72  THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 

they  are  done  quarrelling.  The  boy  usually  comes  out  first-best,  but  it 
won't  be  long  before  the  bear  will  be  strongest.  When  that  time  comes 
the  bear  will  have  to  go  to  market,  and  if  there  is  nobody  who  wants  to 
buy  him  he  will  be  cut  up  into  steaks. 

"Last  week  the  mush-kettle  was  set  out  to  cool,  and  the  boy  and  cub 
had  a  fine  time  scrapin'  it  out.  They  went  into  it  in  a  hurry,  and  when 
they  got  through  they  were  the  worst-looking  pair  you  ever  saw.  They 
were  all  mush  from  head  to  foot,  and  my  wife  says  that  if  it  happens 
again,  either  the  boy  or  the  bear  will  have  to  leave  the  house  and  take  to 
the  woods." 

As  soon  as  the  greetings  were  over,  Jack  invited  the  new  arrivals  to 
enter  his  quarters  and  make  themselves  at  home.  They  found  a  log- 
house  with  four  rooms,  one  of  which  served  as  kitchen,  another  as  dining 
and  general  sitting  room  ;  a  third  was  appropriated  to  visitors;  while  the 


SCRAPING   THE    KETTLE. 


fourth  was  the  particular  resort  of  Jack  himself.  It  was  hung  with  all 
sorts  of  hunting  implements,  and  was  also  used  as  a  store-room  for  many 
of  the  articles  that  could  not  be  stowed  away  in  the  kitchen.  The  space 
was  somewhat  restricted,  as  the  cabin  was  small,  and  Jack  was  not  very 


THE   HOME   OF   A   HUNTER. 


73 


methodical  in  his  arrangements.     None  of  the  rooms  were  more  than 
twelve  feet  square,  and  the  kitchen  was  the  smallest  of  all. 

Jack's  companions  in  this  wilderness  home  were  a  negro  and  his  wife, 
who  attended  to  all  the  household  and  other  occupations,  and  left  Jack 
free  to  wander  in  the  forest  and  do  what  he  pleased.  They  were  lodged 


JACK  S    ItUOM. 


in  a  building  close  by  the  house,  and  behind  it  was  another  structure  of 
logs,  which  served  as  a  stable  for  a  single  cow  and  for  horses  that  hap- 
pened to  come  there,  as  on  the  present  occasion.  They  were  known  as 
Bill  and  Fanny,  and  came  originally  from  one  of  the  Southern  States  in 
the, expectation  of  acquiring  a  fortune  "  way  up  North  ;"  they  discovered, 
like  many  others  in  this  world,  that  fortunes  cannot  always  be  made  by 
emigrating;  but  with  the  cheerfulness  peculiar  to  their  race  they  accepted 
the  situation,  and  set  about  finding  something  that  could  make  them  a 
living.  Jack  encountered  them  one  day  when  he  was  looking  for  some- 
body to  work  around  his  hunting-lodge,  and  it  did  not  take  long  to  make 
a  bargain.  They  had  a  little  garden  a  few  hundred  yards  from  the  house, 
and  with  pigs  and  chickens,  and  a  cow  to  keep  them  company,  they  were 
quite  contented  in  their  mountain  home.  The  cold  of  the  winters  was 
their  great  dread,  as  it  was  far  more  severe  than  anything  they  had  ever 
known  in  their  old  home,  and  the  first  fall  of  snow  always  brought  tears 
to  the  eyes  of  Fanny. 

"I  don't  like  this  yere  snow  at  all,"  she  would  say,  "and  wish  it 


THE    YOUNG  KIMRODS. 


wouldn't  come  'round  so  every  year.     Up  here  in  de  Xorth,  when  a  tiling 
is  real  white,  you  say  it's  '  white  as  snow ;'  down  South,  we  says  '  white  as 


BILL   AS   OUT-DOOR   COOK. 


cotton,'  as  that's  the  whitest  thing  we  knows  of  where  dere  ain't  no  snow. 
Wish  I'd  never  knowed  how  white  de  snow  is  by  seeing  of  it." 

Bill  used  to  go  with  Jack  on  his  hunting  excursions,  especially  in  sum- 


A   TRIP   TO   THE   MOUNTAINS. 


75 


mer,  and  it  was  his  great  delight  to  make  things  comfortable  for  his  em- 
ployer. He  was  a  capital  cook,  and  the  only  point  on  which  there  was 
any  jealousy  between  Bill  and  Fanny 
was  when  the  subject  of  boiling  po- 
tatoes or  preparing  other  table  sup- 
plies came  under  discussion.  Fanny 
claimed  that,  with  a  good  fire  in  the 
kitchen,  she  could  boil  potatoes  bet- 
ter than  any  other  living  woman,  or 
man  either.  Bill  did  not  believe  in 
a  kitchen  in-doors,  and  said  that  the 
best  way  to  cook  potatoes  was  in  a 
kettle  in  the  open  air.  Whenever 
Jack  wanted  a  discussion  to  while 
away  the  time,  he  was  in  the  habit 
of  starting  the  subject  of  cookery, 
and  leading  it  around  so  that  Bill 
and  Fanny  would  become  entangled 
in  it.  By-and-by  it  would  be  neces- 
sary to  pour  oil  on  the  troubled  wa- 
ters, which  he  would  do  by  praising 

Fanny  as  the  best  kitchen  cook  he  had  ever  known,  and  declaring  that 
Bill  had  no  superior  for  cooking  in  camp. 

Supper  was  served  soon  after  the  arrival  of  Joe  and  the  boys,  arid 
when  it  was  over  the  party  sat  around  the  fire  in  the  principal  room  for 
an  hour  or  two,  to  talk  over  plans  for  the  next  day.  Jack  told  the  boys 
they  must  not  expect  too  much,  as  the  country  was  by  no  means  a  wilder- 
ness, and  even  the  bears  were  becoming  civilized.  "If  things  go  on  for 
twenty  years  to  come  as  they  have  in  the  twenty  years  just  ended,"  said 
Jack,  "we  may  expect  that  the  bears  will  be  learning  to  read  and  write, 
and  be  regular  subscribers  to  the  papers.  They  must  either  adopt  the 
manners  of  good  society  or  be  killed  off,  and  probably  they  would  prefer 
the  former  alternative." 


FANNY    IN    TIIK    KITCIIKN. 


76 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    BOYS'  FIRST   BEAR-HUNT. 

EVERYBODY  rose  early  the  next  morning,  and  before  the  sun  was 
up  the  party  had  finished  breakfast,  and  was  ready  to  start  for  the 
liannts  of  the  bear.  It  was  not  intended  to  stay  out  overnight  on  the 
mountains,  as  the  cold  was  too  severe  to  sleep  in  the  open  air,  and 
the  elders  of  the  party  did  not 
think  it  wise  to  submit  the  young 
Nimrods  to  a  severe  trial  at  first. 
A  substantial  lunch  was  prepared 
by  Fanny  and  tied  into  a  bun- 
dle, which  Bill  carried  on  his  back 
along  with  the  guns  that  were  to 
be  trusted  to  George  and  Harry 
whenever  there  was  a  prospect  of 
shooting  anything.  Jack  sug- 
gested that  they  would  find  plenty 
of  rabbits  which  would  serve  to 


CLIMBING    TUB    MOUNTAIN. 


THE  BOYS'  FIRST  BEAR-HUNT.  77 

piece  out  the  lunch  and  give  them  all  the  fresh  meat  they  wanted  for  sat- 
isfying their  appetites. 

They  left  the  little  valley  where  Jack's  house  stood,  and  were  soon 
climbing  among  the  pines  that  covered  the  mountains  almost  to  their 
summits.  For  a  part  of  the  distance  their  way  led  near  a  stream  swollen 
by  the  recent  rain,  and  that  came  tumbling  down  in  a  torrent  which 
dashed  among  the  rocks  and  was  lashed  into  foam.  Harry  narrowly  es- 
caped a  slip  that  would  have  been  fatal ;  he  was  walking  within  a  few 
inches  of  the  brink  of  the  stream,  when  a  stone  gave  way  beneath  one  of 
his  feet  and  threw  him  on  his  side.  He  had  the  presence  of  mind  to 
seize  the  projecting  root  of  a  tree,  and  thus  save  himself  from  a  plunge 
among  the  rocks,  where  the  water  was  surging  and  boiling  furiously. 

They  had  nearly  two  hours  of  this  kind  of  work,  till  they  reached  a 
place  where  the  ground  became  less  broken,  and  the  trees  more  abundant. 
Jack  called  a  halt,  and  said  they  were  in  the  region  of  game ;  they  would 
see  plenty  of  rabbits  and  as  the  snow  had  been  carried  away  by  the  re- 


COOKING  THE   RABBITS. 


cent  rains,  and  the  rabbits  had  put  on  their  winter  dress  of  white,  there 
would  be  no  difficulty  in  detecting  them.  While  he  spoke  one  came 
running  leisurely  along  through  the  forest,  and,  when  within  a  short  dis- 
tance of  the  party,  he  was  bowled  over  by  Jack's  rifle. 

Two  or  three  more  were  shot,  and  then  the  guns  were  carefully  loaded, 
and  the  bear-hunt  began.  Bill  was  left  to  build  a  fire,  and  cook  some  of 
the  rabbits  for  lunch,  while  the  four  hunters  moved  off  in  the  direction 
of  a  thicket  which  Jack  said  was  a  favorite  haunt  of  the  bears. 


TS 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


Bill  dressed  his  rabbits,  and  in  a  little  while  he  had  three  of  them 
fastened  on  sticks  and  roasting  over  the  tire.  Bill  always  claimed  that 
the  best  way  to  cook  a  rabbit  was  to  roast  him.  "None  of  yer  stewed 
rabbit  for  me,"  he  used  to  say ;  "  I  wants  him  roasted  on  a  stick,  and  if 
you  turn  him  around  once  in  awhile,  so  as  to  do  all  sides  of  him  alike, 
there  hain't  no  better  bird  in  the  world." 

The  hunters  walked  cautiously  through  the  forest  for  half  a  mile  or 
more  without  seeing  any  indications  of  bears.  At  length  they  reached  a 
spot  where  the  ground  was  quite  clear  of  leaves  and  grass,  and  worn  as 


THE    BEARS     BALL-ROOM. 

smooth  as  a  threshing-floor.     The  peculiar  appearance  of  the  place  roused 
the  curiosity  of  the  boys,  and  one  of  them  asked  what  was  the  cause  of  it. 
"  Well,"  said  Jack,  after  a  pause,  "  it's  a  bears'  ball-room." 
"A  bears'  ball-room!"  exclaimed  Harry,  in  astonishment. 
"Yes,  that's  what  they  call  it,"  was  the  repty.     "The  old  hunters  say 
that  the  bears  get  together  once  in  awhile  and  have  a  regular  dance,  just 
like  civilized  folks.     I  never  saw  one  of  these  dances  myself,  but  I  know 
hunters  who  have  seen  them,  and  they  say  that  the  bears  choose  partners, 


EOWZEY  AND  THE   BEAR-DANCE.  79 

and  waltz  off  as  though  'they  had  been  to  dancing-school  and  knew  all 
about  it.  They  have  a  real  good  time  all  by  themselves,  and  anybody  who 
attempts  to  interfere  with  them  is  in  danger  of  getting  the  worst  of  it, 
unless  he  has  plenty  of  friends  about. 

"  There's  a  hunter  named  Rowzey,  who  lives  over  on  the  other  side  of 
the  mountains,  and  he  tells  some  very  tough  stories  about  the  bears'  dance. 

"  He  says  that  one  time  he  was  out  in  the  woods  and  heard  a  loud 
noise  that  surprised  him,  as  he  had  never  heard  anything  of  the  kind  be- 
fore. He  crept  up  and  saw  a  lot  of  bears  gathered  together  for  a  dance. 
Some  were  dancing  in  the  middle  of  the  floor;  others  were  leaning  against 
the  trees,  as  though  tired  out  and  taking  a  nap;  and  one  was  sprawled  on 
the  ground,  without  any  strength  left  in  his  muscles.  Some  were  climb- 
ing up  into  the  trees,  and  others  had  rigged  up  a  swing,  where  they  were 
having  a  jolly  time  of  it. 

"  Rowzey  says  the  sight  made  his  blood  run  cold  and  warm  at  the 
same  moment.  He  knew  if  he  disturbed  them  and  they  caught  sight  of 
him,  he  would  have  a  hard  time  to  get  away;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  he 
could  not  see  so  much  good  bear-meat  going  to  waste. 

"  He  thought  things  over  a  few  minutes  while  the  bears  were  having 
their  fun,  and  then  decided  what  to  do. 

"He  crept  up  as  close  as  he  could,  and  while  two  of  the  bears  were 
having  a  friendly  scuffle,  he  threw  a  stone  at  one  of  them  so  as  to  hit  him 
on  the  head  where  the  other  bear  was  clawing  him. 

"  'The  bear  that  was  hit,'  says  Rowzey,  'thought  it  was  the  other  one 
that  did  it,  and  so  he  hit  back  with  his  best  licks.  Of  course  the  other 
one  wouldn't  stand  that  sort  of  thing,  and  in  less  than  ten  seconds  they 
were  tearing  each  other  to  pieces. 

" '  The  other  bears  joined  in,  the  music  and  dancing  stopped,  and  it 
was  a  free  fight  all  round ;  half  a  hundred  bears  doing  their  level  best  to 
murder  each  other.  I  didn't  feel  called  on  to  interfere,  except  to  shoot 
the  largest  of  them  and  give  the  little  fellows  a  fair  chance.  The  fight 
lasted  nearly  an  hour,  and  when  it  was  over  there  were  twenty-three  dead 
bears  there,  and  some  of  them  were  so  chewed  up  you  couldn't  say 
whether  they  were  bears  or  coarse  hash.  I  went  for  my  neighbors  and 
gathered,  in  the  bear- meat,  and  we  had  a  hard  day's  work  to  take  it  to 
the  settlement. 

" '  Some  of  those  bears  weighed  three  hundred  pounds  apiece.  We 
had  no  Fairbanks  patent  scales  in  the  woods,  but  we  had  all  been  weighed 
at  one  time  or  another,  and  each  man  knew  his  figure  to  a  pound.  We 
put  a  plank  over  a  stump,  and  with  a  carcass  on  one  end  and  a  man  on 


80 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


the  other,  we  got  that  bear-meat  down  to  a  dot.  Jim  Kelsey  weighed 
just  three  hundred  pounds,  and  there  were  two  bears  that  tipped  him 
exactly.  Fairbanks  may  be  the, standard  of  the  world  for  weighing-ma- 
chines, but  they  can't  beat  Jim  Kelsey  at  one  end  of  a  plunk  and  an  old 
bear  at  the  other.' 

"  I  cannot  vouch  for  the  correctness  of  Rowzey's  stories,  but  the}7  are 
certainly  interesting.     If  lie  is  to  be  believed,  he  has  had  more  hair-bread tli 


BOWZEY'S  PATENT  BALANCE. 

escapes  than  anybody  else  in  the  mountains.  The  last  time  I  saw  him 
he  was  telling  how  he  was  watching  for  bears  one  day,  and  was  nearly 
killed  by  a  drove  of  deer. 

"  He  said  he  was  sitting  under  a  bush  where  there  were  signs  of  his 
favorite  game,  when  suddenly  there  was  a  crashing  in  the  bushes.  He 
hadn't  time  to  rise  to  defend  himself  before  three  deer  were  upon  him, 
ancl  one  of  them,  an  old  buck  with  horns  like  a  pine-tree,  jumped  fairly 
over  his  head,  and  kicked  him  with  his  hind  feet  as  he  passed.  In  proof 
of  the  occurrence  Rowzey  showed  me  a  hole  in  the  shoulder  of  his  coat, 
which  he  said  was  caused  by  the  hoofs  of  the  buck,  and  of  course  I  could 
not  doubt  the  truth  of  his  story  after  that." 


FINDING   A   BEAR. 


81 


At  the  conclusion  of  this  narrative  of  the  wonderful  adventures  of 
Kowzey,the  party  moved  on.  Up  to  this  time  the  dogs  had  been  rather 
quiet,  but  they  now  began  to  show  signs  of  uneasiness,  which  indicated  to 
Jack  that  there  was  something  in  the  vicinity. 

The  faithful  animals  put  their  noses  to  the  ground,  and  began  sniffing 
and  growling  so  earnestly  that  there  was  no  mistaking  their  anger  and 
excitement.  Soon  they  started  off  in  the  direction  where  the  forest  was 
thickest,  and  our  friends  made  all  haste  to  follow  them.  Hardly  had  the 


A   NARROW    ESCAPE. 

dogs  disappeared  when  they  began  to  bark,  and  before  the  hunters  could 
come  up  with  them  their  attention  was  concentrated  at  the  root  of  a  large 
tree.  Examination  showed  that  the  tree  was  hollow,  and  the  earnestness 
of  the  dogs  was  regarded  as  a  sure  indication  that  a  bear  was  concealed 
in  the  trunk. 

"It  is  probably  his  winter -quarters,"  said  Jack.  "It  is  about  tiiue 
for  the  bears  to  seek  their  places  of  hibernation,  and  if  you  had  come  here 
a  fortnight  later  you  would  have  had  no  chance  to  get  one,  as  they  would 
have  been  stowed  away  for  their  sleep  of  two  or  three  months.  This  is 
your  last  chance  for  the  season." 

6 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


The  bear  was  in  the  tree  beyond  a  reasonable  doubt,  and  now  arose 
the  question  of  "  How  shall  we  get  him  ?" 

A  fire  was  kindled  at  the  foot  of  the  trnnk  so  that  the  smoke  would 


SMOKING  A  BEAR  ODT  OF  A  TREE. 


ascend  the  hollow,  and  in  a  few  moments  it  was  seen  issuing  from  an  open- 
ing between  the  principal  branches. 

"  We'll  have  him  now,  sure,"  exclaimed  Jack ;  "  he  can't  stand  that 
long" 

The  shot  at  the  bear  was  offered  to  the  boys,  but  they  both  declined 


BRINGING  DOWN  THE   GAME.  83 

it  until  they  should  be  more  skilful  in  the  use  of  the  rifle.  Harry  sug- 
gested that  it  would  be  best  for  them  to  see  a  bear  shot  by  some  one  else 
before  they  attempted  the  feat,  and  his  opinion  was  echoed  by  George. 
Jack  then  gave  the  place  of  honor  to  his  friend  Joe,  and  the  latter  stepped 
forward  to  watch  for  the  bear. 

The  smoke  rose,  increasing  every  moment,  and  in  a  little  while  the 
animal  crept  out  and  stretched  himself  along  a  horizontal  limb.  He 
tried  to  conceal  himself,  but  in  vain,  as  the  limb  was  too  small  to  enable 
him  to  hide  behind  it. 

Joe  raised  his  rifle  as  the  bear  came  fully  into  view.  There  was  a 
sharp  report,  and  the  bullet  evidently  went  true  to  its  mark.  The  bear 
doubled  himself  in  a  vain  effort  to  reach  the  hollow  of  the  tree  again, 
and  then  fell  heavily  to  the  ground.  The  shot  had  penetrated  his  body 
just  back  of  the  fore-shoulder,  and  in  the  region  of  the  heart.  If  he  had 
any  life  left  in  him  after  the  shot,  he  must  have  had  it  all  knocked  out  by 
the  force  of  the  fall. 

The  bear  proved  to  be  of  medium  size,  and  his  coat  was  thick  and 
glossy  though  singed  in  a  few  places  by  the  flre  that  had  driven  him  from 
the  tree.  Jack  and  Joe  quickly  removed  his  skin  and  divided  the  meat, 
which  was  slung  on  poles,  and  in  this  way  carried  to  the  place  where  Bill 
was  waiting  for  them  with  the  lunch. 

"We  are  not  so  fortunate,"  said  Jack,  "as  the  man  who  was  out  once 
in  the  New  Hampshire  woods  with  a  party  of  friends,  and  thought  they 
wasted  a  great  deal  of  strength  bringing  their  game  into  camp.  He 
vowed  that  when  he  went  for  any  he  would  bring  it  in  alive,  and  the 
very  next  morning  he  had  a  chance  to  do  so. 

"  He  went  for  a  stroll  before  breakfast,  and  took  his  gun  along  on  the 
chance  of  getting  something.  A  bear  that  had  doubtless  been  attracted 
to  the  camp  by  the  smell  of  good  things  around  it  was  in  the  bushes  not 
far  off,  and  was  spied  by  our  friend.  He  raised  his  gun  and  fired,  and 
the  effect  was  to  rouse  the  bear  to  anger,  and  bring  him  upon  his  assailant. 

"  The  latter  came  into  camp  at  his  best  speed,  with  the  bear  hanging 
to  his  coat-tails.  The  shot  and  the  subsequent  shouts  of  the  scared  hunter 
had  roused  his  friends,  and  the  bear  was  killed.  When  he  got  his  breath 
and  was  able  to  speak,  he  said, 

" '  I  told  you  I  would  bring  my  game  in  alive,  and  I've  done  it.' 

"It  was  admitted  all  around  that  he  had  kept  his  promise,  and  they 
hoped  he  would  do  so  again.  He  answered  that  one  experience  of  the 
kind  was  all  he  wanted,  and  for  the  future  he  would  follow  the  old  plan."1 

While  they  were  at  lunch  Jack  explained  to  the  boys  some  of  the 


84  THE    YOUNG   NIMRODS. 

peculiarities  of  the  bear,  and  told  how  hunters  took  advantage  of  them  in 
pursuing  him. 

"  One  of  the  remarkable  things  about  him,"  said  Jack,  "  is  his  love 
of  order  and  regularity.  When  he  goes  to  and  from  his  den  to  the  stream 
where  he  drinks,  he  always  follows  the  same  path  and  puts  his  feet  in 
the  same  spots.  When  he  enters  a  field,  crosses  a  stream,  or  goes  among 
the  bushes  where  berries  grow,  he  follows  the  same  track,  and  never 


• 


"I    BRING    MY    GAME    IN    ALIVE 


varies  from  it  in  the  least.  Consequently,  when  a  hunter  knows  a  bear's 
path,  he  is  absolutely  certain  that  the  animal  will  come  there  again  and 
again,  provided  he  does  not  discover  that  it  has  been  invaded. 

"  Hunters  conceal  themselves  near  the  path  of  the  bear,  and  shoot 
him  as  he  is  going  along  and  not  dreaming  of  danger.  Then  they  set 
spring-guns  in  his  way,  and  arrange  them  so  that  the  bear  will  be  his  own 
executioner." 

"  How  do  they  do  that?"  one  of  the  boys  asked. 

"I  will  explain,"  Jack  replied.  "To  set  a  spring-gun  requires  a  great 
deal  of  care,  and  a  previous  knowledge  of  the  age,  sex,  and  size  of  the 
animal  to  be  killed." 

"  How  can  they  find  out  all  that  ?" 

"By  observing  the  marks  where  a  bear  climbs  a  fence  into  a  cornfield, 
and  by  measuring  the  size  of  his  footprints.  Two  forked  sticks  are  driven 
into  the  ground  to  support  the  rifle,  so  that  it  will  be  at.  right  angles 
across  the  bear's  path,  and  then  some  more  sticks  are  arranged  for  dis- 
charging the  piece.  A  bit  of  grape-vine  is  generally  used  for  the  latter 


HOW   A  BEAR   SHOOTS   HIMSELF. 


85 


purpose;  it  must  be  high  enough  to  prevent  the  bear  stepping  over  it, 
and  not  large  enough  to  induce  him  to  leap  it;  in  fact,  he  must  push  it 
aside  with  his  nose,  and  the  rifle  must  be  placed  so  that  when  the  push 
is  made  the  bullet  will  be  driven  into  his  heart. 


A    SPRING-GUN. 

"  The  whole  thing  must  be  arranged  in  the  afternoon,  so  that  the 
bear  will  be  killed  while  taking  his  evening  walk.  He  comes  along  his 
path  and  sees  something  lying  across  it  that  was  not  there  on  his  last 
visit. 

"He  stops  and  looks  at -it.  It  is  nothing  but  a  grape-vine  that  has 
fallen  there  by  accident ;  it  is  too  high  to  step  over,  and  so  small  that  it 
is  not  worth  leaping.  It  can  be  easily  pushed  to  one  side,  and  so  he 
pushes  it. 

"  The  rest  of  the  story  tells  itself.  The  natives  of  North-eastern  Si- 
beria have  a  similar  arrangement,  in  which  a  powerful  bow  takes  the 
place  of  the  gun,  and  an  arrow  is  driven  into  the  bear's  side  instead  of 
a  bullet." 

When  lunch  was  ended,  Jack  suggested  that  they  had  best  be  moving 
toward  home,  as  the  days  wrere  short,  and  if  they  delayed  much  longer 
they  might  be  caught  out  overnight.  The  few  utensils  that  had  been 
brought  for  the  use  of  the  party  were  repacked,  and  again  confided  to 
Bill,  together  with  one  of  the  quarters  of  bear-meat.  Thus  laden,  the 
party  moved  off. 

Half-way  down  the  mountain  they  saw  the  smoke  of  a  camp-fire,  and 


86 


THE   YOUNG   XIMBODS. 


on  Hearing  it  somebody  called  to  Jack  and  asked  what  Inck  he  had  had 
with  the  bears.  Then  followed  an  invitation  to  stop  and  partake  of  a 
roasted  rabbit,  an  invitation  that  was  declined  with  the  explanation  that 
they  had  just  feasted  on  the  same  delicacy.  They  halted  a  few  minutes 
with  the  strangers,  who  were  seated  around  their  fire,  and  resting  after 
a  hard  tramp  in  the  forest.  Their  guns  leaned  against  the  trees ;  one  of 
the  men  was  watching  a  small  stewpan  that  simmered  on  the  fire,  while 
another  was  smoking  his  pipe,  and  probably  wondering  how  soon  the 
lunch  would  be  ready. 

In  a  little  while  our  friends  continued  their  walk,  and  as  they  descended 
the  mountain,  Jack  explained  to  his  companions  that  the  solemn-looking 
man  over  the  stewpan  was  one  of  the  most  famous  hunters  in  that  part 
of  the  country,  and  had  probably  killed  more  bears  than  any  one  else. 


THE    STRANGERS. 


"Did  yon  see  the  scar  beginning  on  his  nose  and  running  downward 
toward  the  beard  ?"  Jack  asked. 

Harry  answered  that  he  had  noticed  it,  but  George  had  not  gone  as 
near  to  the  fire  as  Harry,  and  therefore  had  not  seen  the  scar. 


SAM'S   FIGHT   WITH  A   BEAR. 


87 


"  Well,"  continued  Jack,  "  that  scar  was  received  in  a  fight  with  a  bear 
four  or  five  years  ago,  about  twenty  miles  from  here.  Sam — his  name 
is  Sam  Brown — was  out  with  a  friend,  when  they  came  upon  a  couple  of 
bears,  and  so  suddenly  that  they  were  not  ten  yards  off  when  they  saw 
them.  One  bear  was  killed  at  the  first  shot;  the  other  rifle  missed  fire, 
and  the  bear  that  was  not  hurt  rushed  on  the  two  men. 

"They  drew  their  hunting- knives  to  defend  themselves;  but  Sam's 
friend  did  not  stay  long:  he  ran  over  the  hill  as  fast  as  he  could  go,  and 
left  Sam  to  fight  it  out  alone. 

"  He  killed  the  bear,  but  he  had  a  terrible  struggle  before  he  succeeded. 
His  arms  and  sides  were  torn  and  bitten,  and  his  face  was  scratched  where 
you  saw  the  sear.  The  mark  on  his  face  is  nothing  compared  with  those 
where  the  other  wounds  were  made,  and  since  that  time  Sam  says  he  does 
not  want  to  fight  a  bear  with  a  hunting-knife  unless  the  bear  is  dead 
first." 


SAM    BROWS  9    BEAU-FIGHT. 


88  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

SNOW-SHOES.— MOOSE   AND   ELK   HUNTING. 

THE  long  walk  in  the  mountains,  which  was  an  unusual  exertion  for 
them,  had  wearied  our  young  friends  so  much  that  they  slept  late  on 
the  following  morning,  and  were  not  in  a  condition  for  renewing  their 
journey  in  the  forest  immediately.  But  in  spite  of  their  weariness  they 
were  desirous  of  having  a  further  experience  in  hunting  matters,  and 
their  first  question  on  meeting  Jack  was  in  relation  to  the  plans  for  the 
day.  Jack  told  them  they  were  to  do  nothing  more  exciting  than  stay 
around  the  house  and  look  at  his  hunting  implements  and  trophies;  if 
they  tried  to  do  too  much  at  first,  they  would  run  the  risk  of  becoming 
satiated  with  hunting,  and  therefore  it  was  the  best  plan  to  take  matters 
very  quietly  in  the  beginning. 

One  of  the  first  things  to  attract  their  attention,  on  entering  the  room 
where  Jack  kept  his  spare  articles  of  the  chase,  was  a  pair  of  snow-shoes. 

Harry  wanted  to  try  them  on,  and  Jack  allowed  him  to  do  so.  The 
youth  endeavored  to  fasten  them  to  his  feet,  but  could  not,  and  he  won- 
dered how  it  was  possible  to  keep  the  shoes  in  place. 

"  It  doesn't  take  long  to  become  accustomed  to  them,"  said  Jack ; 
"and  when  you  have  learned  how  to  use  them,  you  will  get  along  very 


A   SNOW-SHOE. 


well.     You  cannot  run  rapidly  with  snow-shoes,  but  you  can  travel  over 
the  deep  snows,  when  without  them  you  could  hardly  get  along  at  all." 

The  boys  examined  the  snow-shoes,  and  found  they  were  a  sort  of  oval 
frames  about  a  foot  wide  in  the  broadest  part,  and  nearly  three  feet  long, 


SNOW-SHOES. 


89 


A    HUSTEIl    PURSUING    A    MOOSK. 


coming  to  a  point  at  the  rear  end,  and  slightly  turned  up  in  front.  Across 
the  open  space  enclosed  by  the  frame  there  was  a  net-work  of  thongs  cut 
from  some  tough  hide,  and  there  was  a  light  crossbar  in  the  centre,  where 
the  foot  of  the  wearer  rested. 

Harry  was  puzzled  how  to  fasten  the  shoes  in  place.  lie  wanted  to 
tie  the  rear  of  his  foot  down,  but  there  were  no  thongs  for  the  purpose. 
After  he  had  tried  some  minutes,  Jack  explained  the  mode  of  wearing 
them.  He  turned  to  some  drawings  representing  hunting  scenes  in 
Canada,  and  among  them  found  a  picture  of  a  hunter  following  a  moose. 

"  Here,"  said  he,  "  you  can  see  how  the  woodsman  wears  his  snow- 
shoes.  His  feet  are  incased  in  moccasins,  not  in  boots  such  as  we  have 
on  at  present,  and  he  only  puts  the  toe  under  the  thong.  He  goes  along 


90 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


by  a  sort  of  sliding  motion,  and  does  not  lift  the  s'hoe  from  the  snow 
at  all. 

"Here  is  the  advantage  of  wearing  snow-shoes  in  pursuing  the  moose. 
The  hunter  can  glide  along  with  ease,  but  the  animal  sinks  to  his  sides 
at  every  step.  He  can  only  wallow  along  at  a  very  slow  pace,  and  his 
strength  is  speedily  exhausted,  while  his  pursuer  can  come  upon  him  as 
he  likes,  and  take  whatever  position  or  distance  he  chooses.  Hunting  the 
moose  when  there  is  no  snow  on  the  ground  requires  skill  and  courage, 
as  the  animal  is  wary  and  hard  to  kill;  but  when  the  snow  is  three  or 
four  feet  deep,  the  chase  is  a  matter  only  of  endurance,  as  it  requires  no 
bravery  whatever." 

George  asked  if  everybody  in  the  backwoods  of  the  North  was  able 
i  to  walk  with  snow-shoes. 

"  If  you  lived  in  a  region 
where  the  snow  lies  on  the 
ground  for  four  or  five  months 
of  the  year,"  he  continued,  "  you 
would  soon  learn  to  walk  on 
these  things.  Ladies  in  Canada 
are  as  accomplished  as  the  men 
in  walking  with  them,  and  it  is 
not  unusual  for  them  to  make 
pleasure  excursions  through  the 
snow.  I  have  known  surprise 
'$  parties  to  be  made  up  for  call- 
ing on  some  one.  We  would 
meet  at  an  appointed  place, 
and  then  start  off  in  high  spirits 
for  a  regular  frolic.  Occasion- 
ally some  one  would  trip  and 
fall,  but  he  would  be  up  in  a 

moment  to  be  greeted  with  the  laughter  of  his  comrades.  When  the 
visit  was  over,  we  would  have  a  similar  walk  home  again,  and  the  woods 
resounded  with  our  shouts  and  laughter." 

The  subject  of  moose-hunting  naturally  called  attention  to  a  pair  of 
antlers  that  hung  over  the  fireplace  in  the  room  where  they  were.  George 
thought  the  moose  must  have  a  strong  neck  to  carry  such  a  load,  and 
Jack  assured  him  he  was  quite  right,  as  his  neck  was  very  strong. 

Harry  thought  he  would  like  to  go  on  a  moose-hunt,  and  asked  if  there 
was  any  prospect  that  they  could  do  so. 


THE    MOOSE. 


A  SUEPRISE   PARTY   OX  SNOW-SHOES. 


01 


"Not  in  this  region,"  Jack  answered.  "The  moose  is  rapidly  disap- 
pearing from  this  part  of  America ;  very  few  are  killed  now  in  the  woods 
of  Maine,  and  those  who  wish  to  be  sure  of  bagging  one  of  these  animals 
must  go  pretty  well  away  from  civilization.  In  Canada  and  the  British 
Possessions  he  still  abounds,  and  he  is  common  enough  in  the  Far  West. 
I  have  not  shot  a  moose  for  three  or  four  years,  and  the  one  whose  antlers 
you  are  looking  at  was  shot  ten  years  since,  more  than  fifty  miles  from 
this  place." 

"Did  you  run  him  down  with  snow-shoes?"  one  of  the  boys  inquired. 

"  No,"  was  the  reply,  "  I « called '  him." 

The  boys  looked  puzzled,  while  Jack  smiled  as  he  proceeded  to  ex- 
plain how  a  moose  is  "  called." 

"  It  is  proper  to  explain  that  the  moose  has  its  season  of  mating  just 
as  the  birds  have  theirs.  This  usually  begins  in  September  and  ends  late 
in  October,  and  all  through  this  time  the  woods  resound  with  the  call  of 


A    MOONUGl 


the  animals  in  search  of  mates.  The  man  that  can  imitate  the  call  of 
the  female  moose  so  as  to  deceive  the  male  can  get  all  the  game  he  wants. 
They  will  come  from  long  distances,  as  far  as  they  can  hear  the  sound, 
and  the  great  skill  in  calling  is  to  modulate  the  sound  so  that  it  will  bring 
the  moose  into  close  range,  and  make  the  shot  a  certain  one. 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


"  The  best  calls  are  made  with  a  trumpet  of  birch-bark.  It  should  be 
about  eighteen  inches  long,  an  inch  in  diameter  at  one  end,  and  expanding 
to  four  or  five  inches  at  the  other.  A  hunter  can  only  succeed  with  it 
after  long  practice,  as  the  least  false  note  reveals  the  deception,  and  sends 


MOOSE-HDNTING    IN    THE    NORTH-WEST. 


the  moose  away  to  his  retreat.  The  calling  can  only  be  done  on  moon- 
light nights,  as  the  moose  will  not  pay  any  attention  to  it  in  the  daytime, 
and  he  is  so  dark  in  color  that  a  night  when  the  moon  is  shining  is  the 
only  one  when  he  can  be  seen. 

"  The  males  are  terrible  fighters,  and  sometimes  it  happens  that  a 
hunter  will  call  two  of  them  at  once.  On  one  occasion  I  was  out  with  a 
friend  of  mine,  and  we  had  an  Indian  guide  who  was  famous  for  his  skill 
in  calling.  We  selected  a  place  by  the  side  of  an  opening  in  the  forest ; 
my  friend  and  I  sat  down  among  the  bushes,  while  the  Indian  climbed 
into  a  tree-top  and  began  calling  through  his  trumpet.  The  imitation 
was  perfect,  and  in  about  half  an  hour  there  was  a  crash  in  the  bushes, 


CALLING  THE  MOOSE. 


93 


JACK  S    FRIEND,  THE    HUNTEK. 


and  two  of  the  largest  bnll  moose  came  dashing  out  of  the  forest  from 
opposite  sides  of  the  clearing. 

"  As  soon  as  they  saw  each  other  they  began  to  paw  the  earth  and  bel- 
low in  defiance,  and  after  a  few  moments  of  this  amusement  they  lowered 
their  heads  and  rushed  to  an  encounter.  They  came  together  with  a  force 
that  made  their  great  bodies  tremble.  They  were  quite  evenly  matched, 
and  neither  was  able  to  gain  much  advantage  over  the  other,  and  all  their 
pushing  and  crowding  did  no  special  harm  to  either  of  them. 

"We  let  them  go  on  in  this  way  for  nearly  ten  minutes,  while  we  were 
devising  means  to  kill  both  of  them.  The  moose  is  very  quick  to  dis- 
cover danger  by  getting  the  scent  of  a  person,  and  whenever  you  approach 
him  you  must  do  so  against  the  wi'nd.  It  is  marvellous  to  what  a  distance 
he  can  catch  the  scent:  if  there  is  the  slightest  breeze  blowing,  he  can 
discover  the  approach  of  an  enemy  for  a  mile  or  more,  and  you  will  waste 
your  time  if  you  pursue  him  when  he  has  once  ascertained  that  you  are 
after  him. 

"We  circled  round  so  as  to  approach  against  the  wind  without  dis- 
turbing the  bulls  in  their  fight,  and  had  the  satisfaction  of  getting  within 
twenty  3rards  of  them.  I  took  one,  and  my  friend  the  other,  and  we  tired 


94  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

so  close  together  that  the  Indian  heard  only  one  report.  My  friend's 
moose  fell  dead  with  a  bullet  through  his  heart,  but  mine  had  only  his 
fore-shoulder  broken.  He  gave  two  or  three  jumps  to  get  away  while  I 
was  putting  another  cartridge  in  my  breech-loader;  then  I  finished  him 
with  a  shot  through  the  head. 

"  Both  these  animals  were  of  the  largest  size,  arid  the  antlers  yon  are 
looking  at  came  from  the  one  that  fell  under  my  bullets.  But  I  haven't 
told  you  how  large  the  moose  is. 

"This  animal  is  the  largest  of  the  deer  kind  in  America.  He  is 
known  to  the  scientific  as  Alee  Americanus,  and  is  gifted  with  wonderful 


EXAMINING    TRACKS. 

powers  of  speed  and  endurance.  He  is  as  large  as  an  ordinary  horse,  be- 
ing five  feet  high,  and  about  seven  feet  from  the  tip  of  his  nose  to  the 
root  of  his  tail,  and  he  weighs  from  eight  to  twelve  hundred  pounds.  He 
is  not  a  handsome  beast,  and  would  never  be  selected  as  a  type  of  animal 
beauty  by  an  artist. 

"  The  most  remarkable  features  of  the  moose  are  his  horns.  The 
male  is  the  only  one  allowed  to  wear  these  ornaments,  though  once  in  a 
great  while  a  horned  female  moose  is  killed.  The  horns  sprout  when  the 
animal  is  young,  and  acquire  the  length  of  about  an  inch  during  his  first 
year.  They  require  five  years  for  their  full  development,  and  the  horns 


MOOSE  AND  ELK  HUNTING. 


95 


of  a  large  male  moose  will  often  weigh  from  fifty  to  seventy  pounds ; 
those  before  yon  weighed  sixty-three  pounds  when  I  brought  them  home, 
and  we  estimated  that  the  body  of  the  animal  would  tip  the  scale  at 
twelve  hundred  pounds  easily.  So  you  can  see  that  it  is  no  small  matter 
to  kill  a  moose  when  we  take  his  size  into  consideration ;  and  when  you 
remember  that  he  is  one  of  the  wariest  beasts  in  the  American  forest,  you 
can  see  further  how  the  hunter  can  be  proud  of  his  capture.  To  run 
him  down  011  snow-shoes  is  not  a  respectable  mode  of  hunting,  as  the  ani- 
mal is  helpless  both  for  escape  or  defence,  and  the  hunter  is  in  no  more 
danger  than  is  a  butcher  when  he  kills  a  calf.  Calling  requires  skill  and 
patience,  and  so  does  stalking." 

Harry  asked  what  was  meant  by  "stalking." 

"  Stalking,  or  still-hunting,"  said  Jack,  "  consists  in  approaching  the 
animal  slowly  and  silently  while  he  is  feeding  or  otherwise  passing  his 


SHOOTING    ON   THK    RUN. 


time  in  the  forest.  By  following  his  track  you  ascertain  where  he  hides, 
and  then  you  creep  up  ever  so  gently  till  you  are  within  range.  You 
must  be  careful  not  to  make  the  least  noise ;  the  breaking  of  the  smallest 
twig,  and  sometimes  the  rustling  of  the  leaves  and  bushes,  are  enough  to 


96 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


alarm  him  and  send  him  off  on  the  full  run.     When  he  runs  he  lays  his 
head  back,  so  as  to  bring  his  horns  on  a  level  with  his  shoulders,  where 


AN    INDIAN    CORRAL. 


they  will  not  be  in  danger  of  catching  on  the  limbs  of  trees,  and  also 
where  they  are  the  least  burden  to  him.  He  dashes  through  the  forest 
faster  than  the  most  agile  man  can  go,  and  he  even  gives  the  dogs  a  very 
lively  run. 

"  When  pursued  he  often  takes  to  the  water,  and  he  also  goes  to  ponds 
and  rivers  to  feed.  In  the  water  he  can  be  killed  with  ease,  as  his  whole 
attention  must  be  given  to  swimming,  and  he  cannot  fight.  On  land  he 
is  often  very  dangerous,  as  he  will  turn  on  the  hunter  and  strike  terrible 
blows  with  his  fore-feet.  When  a  hunter  is  thus  attacked,  his  only  mode 
of  safety  is  by  taking  shelter  behind  a  tree ;  and  if  he  is  very  active,  he 
can  manage  to  keep  the  tree  between  himself  and  the  enraged  beast. 

"In  winter  the  moose  forms  paths  in  the  forest  where  he  lives,  and 


DRIVING   MOOSE   INTO  A  CORRAL. 


97 


by  following  one  of  these  paths  the  hunter  may  come  on  a  'yard,'  as  it  is 
called.  A  moose-yard  is  simply  a  place  where  several  of  these  animals, 
chiefly  females  and  calves,  or  yearlings,  are  gathered  to  eat  the  bushes 
which  form  their  food.  They  trample  the  snow  to  get  at  these  bushes, 
and  when  they  have  consumed  all  the  food  in  one  place  they  move  to  an- 
other. Frequently  a  hunter  may  bag  several  of  them  by  making  his  way 
to  one  of  these  yards. 

"In  the  North-west,  where  game  is  far  more  abundant  than  on  the 
Atlantic  coast,  the  Indians  have  a  way  of  hunting  moose  and  deer  by 
driving  them  into  a  trap.  They  make  a  corral  or  enclosure  on  a  trail 
where  they  know  the  animals  will  run  when  pursued,  and  then  they  or- 
ganize a  drive  by  surrounding  a  large  extent  of  forest,  and  making  a  great 
noise.  The  frightened  animals  run  in  the  desired  direction  and  enter  the 


THE  "BUCK-AGUE." 

corral,  and  once  in  it  they  become  an  easy  prey.  The  enclosure  is  formed 
of  stakes,  and  between  every  pair  of  stakes  there  is  a  slip-noose  of  thongs 
or  cords.  The  captive  endeavors  to  escape  between  the  stakes,  and  his 

7 


1)8  THE   YOUNG  NIMEOD8. 

horns  become  entangled  in  the  slip-nooses.  When  he  is  thus  caught  he 
may  be  shot  without  difficulty,  or  the  hunter  may  approach  him  with  a 
knife  and  slaughter  him  without  wasting  powder  and  ball,  which  are  very 
costly  in  those  regions." 

George  thought  he  would  like  to  go  on  a  moose-hunt,  and  hoped  he 
would  be  able  to  do  so  before  long. 

"When  you  go  on  your  first  hunt  for  moose,  deer,  or  other  large 
game,"  said  Jack,  "you  won't  be  likely  to  bring  back  much.  You  will 
probably  have  a  severe  attack  of  '  buck-ague,'  as  it  is  called  in  the  West." 

The  boys  had  never  heard  of  this  disease,  and  asked  what  it  was. 

"  Buck-ague,"  Jack  explained,  "  is  a  complaint  that  affects  pretty  nearly 
every  man  the  first  time  he  endeavors  to  shoot  something.  He  is  so  ex- 
cited over  the  prospect  before  him  that  his  hand  trembles,  and  he  cannot 
take  good  aim.  1  have  known  a  man  to  have  a  dozen  shots  in  an  af- 
ternoon, at  very  short  range,  without  hitting  anything.  The  first  time  I 
ever  aimed  at  a  deer,  I  think  he  was  within,  twenty  yards  of  the  muzzle 
of  my  rifle,  and  almost  looking  into  it,  but  even  then  I  missed  him." 

On  the  wall  of  the  room  opposite  to  where  the  antlers  of  the  moose 
were  hung,  there  was  another  pair  of  horns  that  had  been  the  subject  of 
observation  on  the  part  of  the  boys  while  Jack  was  telling  them  about 
buck-ague  and  its  peculiarities.  As  soon  as  he  paused  George  asked  from 
what  animal  those  horns  were  taken. 

"That  is  a  pair  of  elk  horns,"  said  Jack,  in  reply;  "and  a  very  fine 
pair  it  is.  It  is  not  so  large  as  some  I  have  seen  ;  but  you  will  not  often 
find  more  symmetrical  horns  than  these." 

"  Where  did  you  get  them?"  one  of  the  boys  inquired. 

"  A  friend  of  mine  shot  the  original  owner  in  the  Rocky  Mountains," 
Jack  responded,  "  and  gave  the  horns  to  me.  They  came  here  in  a  huge 
box,  and  everybody  on  the  way  wondered  what  could  be  in  such  a  large 
package.  The  elk  does  not  abound  on  the  Atlantic  coast,  and  you  must 
go  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  or  farther  west  to  find  him. 

"He  is  next  to  the  moose  in  size  among  the  deer  family,  and  weighs 
seven  or  eight  hundred  pounds.  His  horns  are  often  five  or  six  feet  long, 
and  I  have  seen  a  pair  that  a  tall  man  could  walk  under  without  stooping 
when  the  points  were  rested  on  the  ground.  They  are  prized  both  for 
their  size  and  the  number  of  their  prongs  or  points.  The  largest  number 
1  have  ever  known  on  a  single  horn  was  nine,  but  much  more  commonly 
there  are  only  five  or  six.  Those  horns  before  you  have  eight  prongs 
each,  or  sixteen  for  the  pair,  and  I  intend  to  make  a  hat-rack  of  them  if  I 
ever  have  a  house  where  people  leave  their  hats  in  the  hall. 


MOOSE    AND   ELK   HUNTING.  99 

"  The  elk  is  riot  so  difficult  to  hunt  as  tlie  moose ;  at  least  so  I  am  told 
by  those  who  have  pursued  him.  During  the  autumn  months  elks  have 
a  habit  of  calling  their  mates  by  a  peculiar  whistle  or  snort,  and  this  sound 
tells  the  hunter  where  they  are,  and  leads  him  directly  to  their  places  of 


THE    AMERICAN    ELK. 


concealment.  It  is  more  difficult  to  imitate  than  the  note  of  the  moose, 
and  it  is  very  rare  indeed  to  find  a  person  who  can  make  the  call  of  the 
elk  so  as  to  deceive  that  animal. 

"If  the  male  elks  meet  at  this  time,  they  indulge  in  a  short  whistling 


100 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


match,  and  then  in  a  fight.  It  is  not  unusual  for  them  to  get  their  horns 
so  entangled  that  they  cannot  separate  them,  and  then  both  of  the  com- 
batants die  of  hunger.  When  I  was  first  in  the  West,  I  was  shown  a  pair 
of  horns  that  had  been  found  just  before  in  the  woods;  they  were  en- 
tangled not  only  so  that  the  first  and  only  wearers  of  them  could  not  get 
them  apart,  but  no  man  in  all  that  region  could  do  so.  I  tried  my  hand 


CAMP   OF    INDIAN    ELK-HCSTERS. 


at  it  for  two  hours,  and  then  gave  it  up.  The  owner  was  unwilling  to 
cut  them,  and  finally  he  placed  them  in  the  principal  room  of  his  house 
in  the  condition  in  which  they  were  discovered. 

"  The  usual  way  of  hunting  the  elk  is  by  stalking,  and  it  can  be  done 
much  more  easily  than  the  pursuit  of  the  moose  under  similar  circum- 
stances. The  elk  docs  not  catch  the  scent  as  quickly  as  the  moose,  and 
sometimes  a  hunter  can  approach  a  herd  from  the  leeward,  and  shoot 
down  half  of  them,  or  even  more,  before  they  take  the  alarm.  I  have 
heard  of  a  hunter  that  shot  twelve  out  of  twenty-seven  in  this  way,  and 
another  that  bagged  four  out  of  seven.  There  is  an  old  saying  among 
hunters  that  if  a  herd  of  elk  is  started  they  never  stop  until  they  have 
crossed  a  stream  or  a  lake;  but  I  do  not  think  this  statement  is  strictly 


-> 

JVC 

r,     r      ^ 

A  TEAM  OF  TROTTING  ELKS.  101 

true.  My  friend  who  sent  me  the  antlers  says  he  has  started  a  single 
herd  three  times  in  one  day ;  and  he  knew  it  was  the  same  because  there 
was  one  of  the  animals  so  peculiarly  marked  that  there  was  no  possibility 
of  mistaking  him  for  another." 

"Why  don't  they  train  the  moose  and  the  elk  to  work  in  harness,  if 
they  are  so  powerful?"  one  of  the  boys  inquired. 

"That  has  been  done  in  several  instances,"  Jack  answered,  "especially 
in  the  case  of  the  elk.  He  is  more  easily  domesticated  than  the  moose, 
and  is  not  as  difficult  to  manage ;  he  is  very  strong,  and  can  draw  a  heavy 
load  with  ease.  A  friend  of  mine  once  had  a  pair  of  trotting  elks,  and 
they  could  beat  all  the  horses  in  the  neighborhood." 

"  How  funny !" 

"  Yes ;  they  were  perfectly  docile,  and  trotted  off  with  a  long,  swing- 
ing pace  that  would  send  them  ahead  of  the  best  horses.  He  had  them 
trained  to  double  harness,  and  could  pass  anything  that  was  brought  out 
to  compete  with  them.  But  they  brought  him  to  grief  one  day,  and  set 
everybody  to  laughing  at  him." 

"How  did  they  happen  to  do  it?" 

"  They  were  trotting  along  very  nicely,  when  all  of  a  sudden  they 
heard  the  barking  of  some  hounds  in  pursuit  of  a  rabbit.  Away  they 
went  over  a  high  fence  and  into  a  river,  taking  the  carriage  and  its  con- 
tents with  them.  They  broke  loose  and  got  to  the  shore,  and  the  carriage 
was  so  knocked  to  pieces  that  it  was  good  for  nothing  afterward.  My 
friend  escaped  very  narrowly,  and  so  did  his  driver,  and  the  elks  ran  four 
or  five  miles  before  they  were  through  with  their  fright  and  were  re- 
captured. 

"  My  friend  inquired  about  the  habits  of  the  elk,  and  learned  that  he 
was  accustomed  to  run  when  he  heard  the  barking  of  the  hounds.  He 
determined  to  cure  his  pair  of  this  habit,  and  so  he  put  them  in  a  large 
field  with  very  high  fences,  and  kept  dogs  barking  around  them  for  several 
days.  At  first  the  elks  were  terribly  scared,  and  ran  about  the  place  in 
great  alarm,  but  finally,  when  they  found  they  were  not  hurt,  they  refused 
to  pay  an}7  attention  to  the  barking,  and  went  on  feeding  as  though  noth- 
ing had  happened.  In  this  way  they  got  over  their  timidity,  and  when 
he  put  them  in  harness  again  they  minded  their  own  business." 

The  greater  part  of  the  day  was  passed  among  Jack's  hunting  equip- 
ments and  trophies,  and  the  boys  added  very  materially  to  their  store  of 
knowledge  between  sunrise  and  sunset.  In  the  evening  they  were  still 
fatigued  from  the  effect  of  the  tramp  after  the  bear,  and  the  consequence 
was  that  they  retired  very  early. 


102 


THE  YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

RETURN  TO   THE   RIVER.— LIFE   AMONG  THE   LOGGERS. 

THE  next  morning  a  messenger  arrived  with  a  letter  for  Joe,  which 
made  it  necessary  for  the  party  to  return  to  the  banks  of  the  Kenne- 
bec.  Accordingly  the  wagon  was  made  ready,  and  the  youths,  with  their 
uncle,  bade  farewell  to  their  kind  host,  and  were  soon  on  the  road  by 
which  they  had  come.  The  return  journey  was  made  quickly,  as  there 
was  a  good  deal  of  down-hill  to  it,  and  the  wagon  dashed  merrily  along 
wherever  the  state  of  the  road  permitted. 

When  Joe  arrived  at  home,  it  was  found  tfrat  a  business  emergency 
would  call  him  away  for  a  week  or  two,  and  the  Doctor  would  accompany 
him.  He  was  one  of  the  parties  to  a  lawsuit  relative  to  the  ownership 
of  some  land.  The  case  had  been  in  court  for  several  years  with  no  im- 
mediate prospect  of  termination,  and  the  costs  had  already  amounted  to 
something  more  than  the  value  of  the  land.  Joe  thought  it  made  little 


JOE'S    MES8KM5KR. 


RETURN   TO    THE    RIVER. 


103 


difference  who  should  win  the  case,  as  nobody  could  make  much  out  of 
it;  but  he  was  in  for  it,  and  determined  to  fight  to  the  end,  as  many 
a  litigant  had  done  before  him  under  similar  circumstances. 

During  the  absence  of  the  elders,  the  boys  amused   themselves  by 
making  daily  rounds  to  Joe's  traps,  and  they  had  good  luck  with  them, 
so  that  they  were  able  to  present  their  uncle  with  several  valuable  skins 
on  his  return.     Then  they  hunted  squir- 
rels, and  rabbits,  and  other  small  game 
that  abounded  there,  and  one  day  they 
accompanied  a  neighbor  on  a  fox-hunt 
with    dogs.       They    picked    up    a    fair 
amount    of    hunting   knowledge ;    and 
when   Joe   came   back   he    pronounced 
them  apt  scholars  in  wood-craft. 

"  You  have  got  along  so  well,"  said 
he,  "that  I  am  going  to  take  you  with 
me  into  the  woods  for  a  fortnight,  or 
perhaps  a  month.  You  will  find  the 
life  somewhat  rough,  but  I  know  you 
will  enjoy  it,  and  learn  a  good  deal  dur- 
ing your  absence." 

He  then  explained  that  the  exigen- 
cies of  his  lawsuit  required  him  to  go 
to  a  lumbermen's  camp  on  the  upper 
waters  of  the  Kennebec,  to  take  some 
testimony  and  settle  certain  questions 
relative  to  boundaries.  He  would  start 
on  the  following  morning,  and  hoped 
the  boys  would  not  delay  his  departure. 

They  answered,  almost  in  the  same 
breath,  that  they  would  be  ready  in  half 
an  hour  if  necessary,  or  even  in  less 
time.  They  wanted  to  make  the  jour- 
ney to  the  backwoods,  and  were  willing  to  go  on  the  instant.. 

"Spoken  like  genuine  hunters,"  said  Joe.     "You  are  the  stuff  that 
Nimrods  are  made  of.     To-morrow  morning  early." 

The  boys  ran  to  the  Doctor,  and  asked  what  they  should  take  with 
them  on  the  proposed  journey. 

"The  less  you  take,  the  better,"  was  the  Doctor's  reply;  "you  want 
some  rough,  warm  garments,  and  plenty  of  them,  and  that  is  all." 


URKAKFAST    IS    IlEADY  ! 


104 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


"Well,  if  that  is  the  case,"  said  Harry,  "it  won't  take  long  to  get 
readv."  They  thanked  the  Doctor  for  his  information,  and  went  away 
to  make  their  preparations.  They  selected  their  roughest  and  thickest 
clothes,  heavy  overcoats  and  blankets,  a  few  materials  for  writing  letters 
to  friends  at  home,  and  some  spare  under-clothing,  along  with  a  few  books 


"PLEASE  PASS  THE  PICKLES. 


that  they  thought  would  be  useful  for  reading  while  in  the  forest,  and 
acceptable  to  the  lumbermen  after  they  were  through  with  them. 

Early  the  next  morning  they  were  on  the  road  in  Joe's  wagon.  A 
ride  of  four  or  five  miles  brought  them  to  the  great  mail-route,  where  the 
stage  to  the  lumber  regions  made  a  daily  trip  each  way,  halting  at  a  way- 
side inn  for  a  change  of  horses,  and  to  allow  the  passengers  time  for 
breakfast. 

Just  as  they  entered  the  hotel,  the  waiter  rung  the  bell  for  the  morn- 
ing meal.  Our  friends  had  taken  a  fair  breakfast  before  starting,  but 
their  ride  through  the  frosty  air  had  given  them  keen  appetites,  and  at 
Joe's  suggestion,  they  sat  down  at  table.  "  It's  a  good  rule,  when  you 
are  travelling  or  hunting,"  Joe  remarked,  "  to  embrace  all  reasonable  op- 
portunities to  eat  something.  You  may  not  be  very  hungry  just  now, 
but  the  interval  to  the  next  eating-place  will  be  a  long  one ;  and  if  you 
neglect  this  opportunity  you  will  be  half  starved  before  the  next  one 
comes." 

The  regular  boarders  of  the  house  were  mixed  up  with  the  stage  pas- 


A   STAGE    STATION   IN   MAINE. 


105 


sengers  in  a  very  miscellaneous  way.  Directly  opposite  the  seats  of  our 
party  there  was  a  group  of  three  persons,  a  lady  and  two  gentlemen,  who 
furnished  a  good  deal  of  amusement  for  the  boys.  The  lady  claimed  to 
be  an  invalid,  and  declared  she  hadn't  appetite  enough  to  eat  a  canary- 
bird,  but  George  and  Harry  made  mental  notes  that  she  disposed  of  two 
mutton-chops,  a  slice  of  ham,  three  eggs,  two  cups  of  coffee,  and  a  large 
piece  of  toast ;  and  as  Joe  led  the  way  from  the  room  Harry  gave  a  final 


SUMMKK    LANDSCAPE    IN    MAINE. 


glance  at  the  lady,  who  was  looking  languidly  toward  the  gentleman  on 
her  left  and  asking  him  to  pass  the  pickles. 

Breakfast  over,  the  stage  drew  up  in  front  of  the  hotel,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  the  passengers  were  in  their  places,  and  away  went  the  horses. 


106 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


The  day  was  bright  and  clear,  and  the  air  sharp  and  bracing.  As  they 
rode  along,  Joe  explained  to  the  boys  some  of  the  peculiarities  of  the 
region  they  were  traversing. 

"  We  are  in  the  season  of  frost  and  cold,"  said  he,  "  and  you  observe 
that  the  trees  are  bare.  In  summer  this  valley  is  as  pretty  as  you  could 
wish  to  see  a  landscape ;  the  open  ground  is  thickly  covered  with  grass, 
and  the  forest  is  a  marked  contrast  to  what  you  see  it  now.  Before  we 
get  into  the  pine  forests  we  shall  come  to  deep  snow,  and  then  you  will 
find  the  landscape  very  monotonous  on  account  of  its  unvarying  white. 


"- 


LUMIiKKMKX     PROSPECTING. 


"  The  lumber  district,  to  which  we  are  going,  may  be  said  to  extend 
over  the  whole  upper  part  of  Maine.  It  is  one  of  the  chief  resources  of 
the  Pine-tree  State,  and  may  be  said  to  constitute  its  wealth.  Thousands 
of  men  are  engaged  in  cutting  trees  and  preparing  the  lumber  for  mar- 
ket, and  they  are  scattered  all  over  the  State.  In  the  early  part  of  this 
century  the  forests  extended  almost  unbroken  from  the  sea-coast  to  the 
northern  frontier;  but  so  rapidly  has  the  country  been  cleared  by  the  en- 
terprise of  the  lumbermen,  that  you  must  go  pretty  well  toward  the  head- 


LIFE  AMONG  THE  LOGGERS. 


107 


waters  of  the  rivers  to  find  any  timber  worth  cutting.  The  lumber  busi- 
ness is  now  of  less  importance  than  formerly,  but  it  still  employs  a  great 
deal  of  capital  and  great  numbers  of  men. 

"  While  we  are  on  the  road  I  may  as  well  tell  you  about  the  business, 
and  then  you  will  have  less  to  learn 
when  we  reach  our  destination. 

"In  the  autumn  three  or  four 
men  go  out  on  a  prospecting  tour 
to  select  a  field  for  their  operations. 
They  travel  through  the  forests  to 
examine  the  timber-land,  and  some- 
times climb  to  the  summits  of  the 
hills  or  the  tops  of  the  highest  trees, 
to  see  as  wide  an  extent  of  country 
as  they  can  at  once.  When  they 
have  fixed  upon  a  locality,  they  buy 
the  land  outright  at  so  much  an 
acre,  or  agree  to  pay  a  fixed  sum 
for  every  thousand  feet  of  lumber 
they  take  from  it. 

"  Their  next  duty  is  to  deter- 
mine the  site  of  the  winter  camps, 
and  lay  out  roads  for  hauling  the 
logs  to  the  river ;  then  they  arrange 
for  the  transportation  of  provisions 
and  supplies,  the  erection  of  the 
necessary  buildings  for  the  men  and 
animals,  and  a  dozen  other  prelim- 
inaries. Then  comes  the  force  of 
men  with  the  ox -teams  to  do  the 
winter  work;  the  roads  are  made, 
and,  with  the  first  fall  of  snow,  the 
woods  resound  with  the  ringing  of 
the  choppers'  axes. 

"The  lumbermen  have  adopted 
the  principle  of  division  of  labor, 
and  the  men  are  divided  into  A  CHOPPER  AT  WORK. 

'crews'    or    working -parties.      A 

crew  includes  from  twenty  to  thirty  men,  with  a  leader  or  'boss;'  two  of 
them  are  skilled  choppers ;  there  are  two  barkers  and  sled-tenders ;  eight 


108 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


swampers,  whose  duty  is  to  keep  the  roads  open  through  the  forest ; 
two  sawyers,  who  cut  the  logs  into  proper  lengths  and  mark  them,  and 
the  rest  are  teamsters  and  for  other  miscellaneous  employments.  The 


WIMTRB    DWELLING   OF  A    CREW   OF    LOGGERS. 


cook  comes  last  in  order,  but  he  is  generally  first,  at  least  in  the  mind  of 
the  logger  when  coming  home  from  a  hard  day's  work.  In  old  times  the 
men  took  turns  at  the  cooking,  and  the  bill  of  fare  included  very  little  be- 
sides pork  and  beans,  and  bread  and  potatoes,  with  fried  bacon  now  and 
then,  and  the  steak  of  a  bear  killed  in  the  forest.  Of  late  years  regular 


WORK  IN   A  LOGGING  CAMP. 


103 


cooks  are  employed,  and  the  loggers  have  a  table  that  would  do  very  well 
for  a  hotel  in  the  city.  They  have  fresh  beef,  vegetables,  preserves,  game 
of  various  kinds,  but  they  have  not  by  any  means  given  up  the  old-fash- 
ioned pork  and  beans. 

"  The  foremen  of  the  crews  select  the  trees  to  be  cut  down,  and  they 
must  exercise  a  great  deal  of  skill  and  judgment  in  making  their  selec- 
tions, as  it  often  happens  that  a  good-looking  tree  will  be  worthless  on 
account  of  internal  rot.  There  are  certain  signs  that  appear  only  to  the 
initiated,  and  where  a  tree  is  decayed  it  is  best  to  let  it  remain  standing, 
rather  than  have  it  lying  on  the  ground  to  impede  the  progress  of  the 


HAULING    LOGS    TO    THK    RIVER. 


teams.  After  the  foremen  come  the  choppers,  and  they  speedily  bring 
the  forest  giants  to  the  ground.  A  tree  may  have  defied  the  storms  of 
many  years,  the  lightning  and  the  whirlwind,  but  it  cannot  resist  the  axe 
of  the  woodman. 

"After  the  chopper  comes  the  barker,  who  removes  the  limbs  and 
bark,  and  prepares  the  log  for  the  sleds.  Then  come  the  sled-tenders, 
and  the  teamsters  with  their  teams.  The  logs  are  placed  on  the  sleds 


110 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


UNLOADING   THE    SLEDS. 


and  hauled  away  to  the  river,  and  sometimes  the  four  yokes  of  oxen  find 
their  burden  too  great,  and  the  teams  must  be  doubled.  A  free  use  of 
whip  or  goad  is  often  necessary,  not  to  speak  of  the  shouts  and  wordy 
encouragements  that  are  liberally  bestowed,  and  are  very  forcible.  The 
work  of  the  teamster  is  not  free  from  danger,  as  a  log  is  liable  to  swing 
around  in  certain  conditions  of  the  road  and  crush  him ;  or  it  may  drive 
ahead  upon  him  and  his  team  while  descending  a  hill.  The  choppers  are 
also  liable  to  be  killed  by  the  broken  limbs  and  branches  thrown  through 
the  air  when  a  tree  falls,  and  sometimes  while  they  are  at  work  they  will 
be  struck  by  limbs  dislodged  by  the  jar  of  their  axes  against  the  trunk. 
The  great  trees  fall  with  a  crash  that  makes  the  woods  resound  for  a  great 
distance,  and  is  by  no  means  unlike  a  volley  of  musketry. 

"  The  logs  are  unloaded  from  the  sleds  at  the  bank  of  the  river,  and 
they  lie  there  until  the  ice  breaks  up  in  the  spring,  the  water  rises,  and 
everything  is  ready  for  the  '  the  drive.' 

"  The  hist  trees  are  cut  for  the  season,  the  last  loads  are  hauled,  and 
the  camp  is  ready  to  be  broken  up.  The  logs  are  to  be  floated  down  the 
river  to  the  mills,  where  they  will  be  cut  into  lumber,  and  the  lumber 


LIFE   OF   A   "  RIVER-DRIVER.' 


Ill 


I'KKl'ARIXG    FOR    THK    U1UVE. 


loaded  into  ships  to  carry  it  to  market.  It  is  very  necessary  to  catch  the 
spring  floods  at  their  highest  point,  as  the  logs  can  only  be  floated  when 
the  river  is  fullest.  Consequently  the  leaders  of  the  loggers  are  on  the 
watch  for  the  first  indications  of  the  melting  of  the  snows,  and  have  all 
their  preparations  completed.  Oars  and  poles  for  managing  the  logs  have 
been  made  by  the  carpenter  at  his  little  shanty  near  the  river,  and  a  great 
number  of  spare  pieces  are  ordered,  to  replace  those  that  are  sure  to  be 
lost  in  the  course  of  the  drive. 

"  The  'river-drivers '  are  generally  the  men  who  have  been  at  work 
as  cutters,  teamsters,  loaders,  etc.,  in  the  forest,  and  their  wages  for  the 
drive  are  increased  in  consequence  of  the  additional  danger  involved. 
They  are  a  rough,  jolly  lot  of  fellows,  and  are  much  given  to  fighting  as 
a  pastime.  When  they  invade  the  river  towns  on  their  way  down  in  the 
spring,  they  make  it  very  lively  for  the  residents,  and  sometimes  do  a 
great  deal  of  damage  to  property  out  of  pure  wantonness.  They  are 
powerful  in  physique,  the  most  of  them  standing  six  feet  or  over  in  their 
stockings,  and  one  of  their  favorite  garments  is  a  red  flannel  shirt  worn 
outside,  and  tucked  into  the  trousers  at  the  waist.  Thus  equipped,  they 


112 


THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


are  quite  picturesque,  and  they  have  the  reputation  of  being  as  generous 
as  they  are  quarrelsome,  and  as  brave  as  they  are  powerful.  They  are  a 
class  of  men  peculiar  to  Maine  and  other  lumber-producing  States,  and 
will  probably  disappear  with  the  extinction  of  that  business,  just  as  the 
famous  boatmen  of  the  Mississippi  disappeared  after  the  introduction  of 
steamboats. 

"The  drivers  are  very  expert  at  handling  the  logs  while  the  drive  is 
in  progress,  and  will  balance  themselves  on  them  with  the  skill  of  the 
champion  rider  in  a  circus.  They  will  jump  from  one  log  to  another  with 


the  agility  of  a  cat,  and  preserve  their  footing  with  ease,  while  a  green 
hand  would  run  a  strong  chance  of  going  into  the  water.  They  float 
along  with  the  logs,  and  where  the  river  is  smooth  they  follow  in  boats, 
which  they  haul  to  the  shore  at  meal-times,  or  when  night  comes  on  them. 
Every  drive  is  accompanied  by  a  cooking-boat,  equipped  with  stove,  plates, 
and  other  necessary  articles  of  camp  life.  When  meal-time  arrives,  the 
cook  sets  his  table  on  shore  and  blows  his  horn,  and  the  men  come  flock- 
ing in  from  the  drive  to  appease  their  ravenous  appetites.  At  night  the 


A  JAM   ON  THE    EIVER. 


113 


softest  spot  on  the  ground  is  selected  for  a  bed,  and  no  matter  what  the 
weather  may  be,  there  is  no  other  sleeping-place  offered.  Then,  too,  the 
most  careful  and  expert  of  the  drivers  get  an  occasional  plunge  in  the  icy 
water  of  the  rivers,  and  it  is  no  wonder  that  they  are  not  famous  for  long 
lives.  They  are  very  vigorous  and  robust  up  to  about  thirty-five  or  forty 
years  of  age ;  but  after  that  time  they  are  liable  to  consumption  and  sim- 
ilar complaints,  and  are  quickly  carried  off. 

"  The  greatest  danger  of  the  rivers  is  at  the  falls,  where  the  logs  are 
liable  to  be  jammed,  and  the  river  choked  with  them.  The  work  of  break- 
ing a  jam  is  difficult  and  dangerous,  and  there  can  be  no  delay  about  per- 
forming it,  as  the  result  of  the  season's  work  depends  on  its  being  accom- 
plished before  the  river  falls. 

"Sometimes  the  logs  must  be  removed  one  by  one  until  the  'key-log,' 
the  one  on  which  the  formation  of  the  jam  depends,  is  reached.  When 


STOPPING    FOR 


this  is  started  the  jam  is  broken  up ;  but  the  man  who  starts  it  has  a  most 
perilous  position.  Sometimes  he  is  suspended  by  a  rope  from  a  tree  or 
cliff,  and  when  he  has  broken  the  jam  he  is  hauled  up  with  a  rapidity  that 


114 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


often  tears  his  skin  and  clothing.  Sometimes  the  key-log  is  cut,  while  at 
others  it  is  pried  with  great  levers,  or  hauled  upon  with  ropes  from  the 
shore ;  but  whatever  plan  is  adopted,  the  work  is  dangerous  for  those  con- 
cerned in  it. 

"I  once  knew  a  river  driver  who  had  a  great  immber  of  narrow  es- 
capes, and  some  of  his  superstitious  comrades  thought  he  bore  a  charmed 


™ 


BREAKING    A    JAM. 


life.  He  was  always  ready  to  take  the  foremost  place  in  breaking  a  jam, 
and  you  can  readily  believe  that  no  one  tried  hard  to  prevent  his  doing  so. 
Once  he  was  breaking  a  jam  above  a  fall  when  it  started  unexpectedly, 
and  in  an  instant  he  was  over  the  fall,  in  the  midst  of  the  surging  waters, 
and  among  the  tumbling  logs.  His  comrades  thought  he  would  be  drowned 
in  the  rushing  river,  or  crushed  by  the  logs — his  chance  of  escape  was 
hardly  one  in  a  thousand  ;  and  as  he  disappeared  no  one  expected  to  see 
him  again.  But,  to  their  great  surprise,  he  came  out  without  a  scratch, 
and  was  soon  among  them  on  shore  without  the  least  sign  of  alarm  on 
his  face.  Nearly  every  season  he  passed  through  some  great  peril,  and  he 
used  to  quote  an  old  adage  that  those  who  were  born  to  be  hanged  would 
never  be  drowned." 


THE   MAN   WITH   A   CHARMED   LIFE. 


115 


One  of  the  boys  asked  if  he  verified  the  correctness  of  the  antiquated 
saying. 

"Assuredly  he  did,"  answered  Joe.  "He  became  weary  of  river- 
driving,  and  went  to  California.  There  he  did  not  prosper  in  any  honest 
pursuit,  and  so  he  '  took  to  the  road ;'  that  is,  he  became  a  highwayman. 
One  day  lie  was  caught  while  robbing  a  stage-coach,  and  the  angry  pas- 
sengers hung  him  on  a  tree  by  the  way-sicle,  after  a  trial  that  was  said  to 
have  lasted  not  more  than  five  minutes.  Some  of  his  old  companions, 


SHIPPING    LUMHKIl. 


when  they  heard  of  the  manner  of  his  death,  said  he  was  never  drowned 
on  the  river,  because  he  was  destined  to  perish  in  a  less  honorable  way." 

"  But  what  becomes  of  the  logs  when  the  river-men  get  through  with 
them?"  Harry  inquired. 

"  They  are  cut  into  planks  and  boards  in  the  saw-mills  near  tide-water. 
There  are  some  of  the  mills  that  keep  as  many  as  a  hundred  saws  in  oper- 
ation, and  in  the  busy  season  they  run  them  day  and  night.  The  lumber 
is  loaded  into  ships,  and  sent  wherever1  it  is  wanted.  You  have  Maine 
lumber  in  'New  York  and  nearly  every  other  city  of  the  Atlantic  coast, 
and  it  goes  also  to  foreign  countries,  though  not  in  great  quantities.  But 


11G 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


I  will  not  undertake  to  give  you  the  figures  showing  the  extent  of  the 
trade,  mainly  because  I  do  not  happen  to  have  them  at  hand.  Perhaps 
before  you  leave  the  State  you  may  have  an  opportunity  to  visit  some  of 
the  saw-mills,  and  see  for  yourselves  how  the  work  there  is  carried  on." 


THE    LAST    MAN    IN    THE    SEASON^    IJUIVE. 


SCENES  IN  A  LOGGING   CAMP.  117 


CHAPTER  IX. 

SCENES   IN  A   LOGGING   CAMP.-CHARLEY   AND   THE   CATAMOUNT. 

THE  stage-coach  carried  the  party  toward  its  destination.  The  boys 
observed  that  every  hour  as  they  proceeded  the  country  became 
more  and  more  wooded,  and  at  length  they  found  the  clearings  were  so 
rare  that  the  forest  was  almost  unbroken.  As  they  entered  the  wooded 
region  they  found  the  ground  covered  with  snow  to  a  depth  of  two,  and 
sometimes  three  feet.  The  road  was  well  trodden,  and  the  great  sleigh 
with  its  four  horses  went  merrily  along.  They  reached  the  end  of  the 
stage-route  at  a  village  on  the  edge  of  a  wide-spreading  forest,  and  from 
thence  their  journey  was  continued  by  private  conveyance. 

It  was  evening  when  they  reached  the  camp  of  the  loggers,  where  Joe 
was  to  find  the  witnesses  he  wanted.  They  were  welcome  visitors,  as  the 
loggers  are  generally  quite  isolated  during  the  winter,  and  if  a  stranger 
happens  among  then],  he  is  regarded  as  a  bearer  of  the  news  of  the  world. 
As  the  boys  entered  the  log-house  where  the  men  lived,  they  found  them- 
selves in  a  room  that  boasted  very  few  of  the  adornments  of  a  New  York 
residence.  The  seats  were  benches  without  rests  for  the  back,  and  the 
tables  were  hewn  out  of  logs  or  made  of  thick  planks.  The  place  was 
wanned  by  a  stove  in  one  corner,  but  they  wrere  told  that  stoves  were  lux- 
uries not  often  seen  in  a  lumbermen's  camp,  and  most  of  the  cabins  were 
heated  by  open  fires.  A  kerosene  lamp  suspended  from  one  of  the  raf- 
ters gave  a  sufficient  light  for  reading  or  writing;  and  as  they  came  into 
the  room  one  of  the  men  was  engaged  in  the  preparation  of  a  letter  for 
the  benefit  of  one  of  his  companions  who  was  unable  to  write.  Another 
was  seated  close  at  hand  with  his  rifle ;  he  was  the  hunter  of  the  estab- 
lishment, and  had  just  returned  from  shooting  a  moose,  which  would 
keep  the  house  in  fresh  meat  for  several  days. 

The  rafters  were  hung  with  a  variety  of  garments  such  as  the  loggers 
wear ;  they  were  put  there  for  the  double  reason  that  it  was  an  excellent 
place  for  keeping  them  dry,  and  there  was  no  other  spot  for  storing  them. 
One  rafter  was  appropriated  to  stockings,  many  of  them  much  the  worse 


118 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


EVENING   IN   CAMP. 


for  wear.     Harry  thought,  if  they  were  in  that  condition  early  in  the 
winter,  they  would  be  in  a  very  bad  way  by  the  end  of  the  season. 

Most  of  the  men  in  the  camp  had  gone  to  bed,  and  others  were  just 
going.  The  sleeping-place  of  the  loggers  was  an  amusing  sight  to  the 
boys.  George  said  he  had  heard. of  things  as  "thick  as  three  in  a  bed," 
but  here  he  found  there  were  not  only  three  but  four  times  that  number 
in  one  bed  together.  There  were  two  beds,  one  on  each  side  of  the  room, 
and  they  consisted  simply  of  long  boxes  filled  with  pine-leaves,  and  cov- 
ered witli  blankets.  The  men  lay  close  together  on  their  sides  ;  so  dense- 
ly were  they  packed  that  when  one  turned  over  it  was  necessary  for  all 
to  turn.  Such  a  method  of  sleeping  would  hardly  answer  for  the  city, 
but  in  the  backwoods  men  are  not  so  particular,  and  their  out-door  life 


SCENES  IN  A   LOGGING   CAMP. 


119 


and  Lard  work  make  the  soft  side  of  a  pine-board  seem  more  luxurious 
than  does  a  downy  couch  to  the  dyspeptic  idler. 

The  cook,  a  grizzled  Frenchman,  had  not  retired  when  they  arrived, 
and  in  a  little  while  there  was  a  supper  of  pork  and  beans  and  bread  on 
the  rough  table  for  them  to  attack.  Tea  was  served  in  tin  cups,  as  the 
breakage  of  crockery  in  the  woods  does  not  make  it  popular.  After  sup- 
per the  question  arose  to  the  minds  of  Harry  and  George  where  they 
should  sleep,  as  they  did  not  discover  any  place  for  them  in  the  beds  of 
the  loggers,  and  there  was  no  indication  of  any  extra  room.  The  cook 
solved  the  mystery  by  bringing  out  some  buffalo-robes  and  blankets,  and 
spreading  them  on  the  floor  near  the  stove.  Their  overcoats  and  wraps, 
added  to  the  articles  furnished  by  the  cook,  gave  them  a  comfortable  out- 
fit for  their  bed ;  and  as 
they  were  greatly  fatigued, 
they  slept  as  soundly  as 
they  had  ever  done  in  all 
their  lives. 

Long  before  daylight 
the  men  were  out  of  their 
beds,  and  getting  ready  for 
breakfast  and  subsequent 
work.  As  the  space  in  li!i|||j: 

the  room  was  limited,  our 
friends  were  obliged  to  rise 
at  the  same  time  as  the 
men,  and  none  of  them 
were  long  in  making  their 

toilets.  The  cook  set  out  the  table  with  a  huge  pot  of  pork  and  beans 
that  had  been  buried  in  the  ashes  of  the  fire  in  a  little  shanty  at  the  end 
that  served  as  kitchen.  This  is  said  to  be  the  best  way  of  cooking  beans; 
at  least  it  is  the  way  preferred  by  lumbermen,  many  of  whom  make  the 
bean  their  chief  article  of  diet.  Whether  the  cooking  is  done  in  the  open 
air  or  in  the  house,  the  plan  is  the  same:  to  cover  the  pot  with  hot  ashes 
and  let  it  remain  there  over-night. 

The  boys  followed  some  of  the  men  whom  they  saw  carrying  axes  and 
saws,  as  they  were  desirous  of  seeing  how  the  work  of  the  logger  is  peis 
formed.  They  were  not  long  kept  in  suspense,  as  it  happened  that  the 
trees  they  were  engaged  upon  were  only  a  few  hundred  yards  from  the 
house. 

"I  see  how  it  is,"  said  Harry,  "they  cut  half  through  the  tree  on  one 


THE    END    OF    THE    SEASON. 


120 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


side,  and  then  on  the  other.     The  stump  is  left  nearly  level,  but  the  end 
of  the  tree  when  it  has  fallen  is  shaped  like  a  wedge." 

"  Yes,  and  that's  the  way  they  use  the  saws,"  George  replied.     "  Two 


LUMBKRMliN    AT    WORK. 


men  stand  on  opposite  sides  of  a  log,  and  by  drawing  the  saw  over  it  from 
one  side  to  the  other,  they  soon  cut  through  it." 

The  boys  watched  the  operation  for  some  time,  and  then  started  to  go 
back  to  camp.     Jnst  as  they  were  leaving  the  spot  they  heard  the  clank- 


SCENES  IN   A  LOGGING  CAMP. 


121 


LOADING    LOGS. 


ing  of  chains  on  a  log-sled,  and  soon  a  team  came  out  of  the  windings  of 
the  road  and  approached  them. 

"  Let  us  stay  and  see  how  they  load  the  logs  on  the  sleds,"  said  Harry. 
"Uncle  Joe  did  not  tell  ns  how  it  was  done,  and  I  have  been  wondering 
how  they  lift  those  great  pieces  of  timber  two  or  three  feet  through." 

George  consented  at  once,  and  the  boys  sat  down  on  a  stump  to  watch 
the  operation. 

They  found  there  was  comparatively  little  lifting  done  by  the  men  in 
loading  the  sleds.  Some  of  the  logs  were  cut  into  lengths  of  from  ten 
to  thirty  feet,  while  others  were  taken  to  the  bank  of  the  river  without 
being  touched  with  the  saw  at  all.  In  the  former  case  the  logs  were  piled 
on  the  sled,  in  the  latter,  the  bntt-end  was  attached  to  the  sled,  and  the 


1-2-2  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

top  trailed  on  the  ground.  The  process  of  loading  was  pretty  nearly  the 
same  in  either  case. 

Two  sloping  sticks,  called  skids,  were  placed  against  the  side  of  the 
sled,  which  was  previously  drawn  up  within  three  or  four  feet  of  the  log. 
A  chain  was  then  passed  under  the  log,  and  while  one  end  was  carried 
under  the  sled,  the  other  passed  over  it  to  a  yoke  of  oxen  that  had  been 
backed  into  the  proper  position.  Two  men  with  levers  in  their  hands 
stood  on  the  side  of  the  log,  and  when  all  was  ready  they  pried  with  the 
levers,  while  the  oxen,  guided  by  their  driver,  hauled  away  on  the  chain. 
The  log  rolled  or  slid  upward  along  the  skids,  and  in  a  very  short  time 
was  in  its  proper  place  and  ready  to  be  bound  with  the  chains. 

The  full-length  logs  were  each  a  load  for  a  single  team,  but  the  short 
ones  were  piled  up  in  numbers  varying  from  three  to  six.  If  the  former 
number  made  a  load,  there  were  two  logs  be- 
low and  one  above;  if  six  were  required  for 
a  load,  the  bottom  layer  contained  three,  the 
second  two,  and  the  third  one.  Nearly  all  the 
power  exerted  in  preparing  a  load  was  sup- 
plied by  the  oxen,  the  men  doing  little  else 
than  steadying  the  logs  and  seeing  that  they 
rolled  in  the  right  place. 

After  the  chains  had  been  passed  around 
the  load  they  were  "  bound,"  so  that  the  logs 

ONE   OF    TUB    LOGGERS.  C°Uld     D0t    SliP'         A    fleXiWe    leV6I>     W&S     PU*     "* 

the  loose  portion  of  a  chain,  and  then  bent 

backward  so  that  it  was  drawn  as  tightly  as  possible.  A  short  chain  held 
the  free  end  of  the  lever  from  going  back  again,  and  as  long  as  the  chains 
and  lever  were  in  their  proper  places  the  load  was  entirely  secure. 

The  general  animation  of  the  scene,  the  crisp,  pure  atmosphere,  the 
aromatic  odor  of  the  pines,  the  whiteness  of  the  snow,  and  the  jolly  airs  of 
the  lumbermen,  had  a  great  fascination  for  the  boys.  They  thought  they 
would  like  to  remain  there  for  the  rest  of  the  winter  to  assist  in  cutting 
and  hauling  logs  to  the  river,  and  in  the  spring  they  would  float  down  the 
stream  with  the  drive;  but  when  they  remembered  what  had  been  told 
them  of  the  rough  life  on  the  river,  and  the  disadvantages  under  which  a 
novice  labors,  it  did  not  take  long  for  them  to  conclude  they  had  better 
return  with  their  uncle  Joe. 

While  they  were  talking  on  the  subject,  there  was  a  shout  among  the 
loggers  that  attracted  their  attention. 

Looking  in  the  direction  indicated,  the  boys  saw  a  deer  running  among 


VISITING  A  NEW  LOGGING  CAMP. 


123 


the  trees.  They  saw  him  only  a  moment  as  he  speedily  disappeared  in  the 
forest.  Very  naturally  the  incident  turned  the  conversation  to  hunting. 

After  a  stroll  through  the  forest  where  the  roads  were  open,  the  boys 
returned  to  the  camp,  and  found  that  their  uncle  had  concluded  his  busi- 
ness, and  would  be  ready  to  start  for  another  camp  as  soon  as  they  had 
taken  dinner.  The  cook  was  placing  it  on  the  table  when  they  arrived, 
so  that  they  had  not  long  to  wait.  It  was  much  like  the  supper  of  the 
previous  evening  and  the  morning's  breakfast,  as  it  consisted  mainly  of 
pork  and  beans.  But  these  delicacies  were  served  cold  instead  of  hot, 
and  consequently  the  dinner  was  not  quite  the  same  as  the  other  meals. 

The  horses  were  brought  out  from  the  rough  shed  that  formed  the 
stable  of  the  camp.  They  were  thoroughly  refreshed  by  their  rest  of  the 
night  and  half  the  day,  and  while  the  harnessing  was  going  on  they 
champed  their  bits  uneasily,  as  though  in  haste  to  be  dashing  along  the 
road.  When  the  signal  was  given  they  started  on  a  trot,  which  was  soon 
increased  to  a  run  that  they  kept  up  for  two  or  three  miles ;  then  they 
gradually  slowed  down  to  a 
trot  again,  and  at  this  pace 
the  miles  were  strung  behind 
them  very  satisfactorily. 

A  ride  of  twenty  miles 
brought  our  friends  to  their 
destination.  They  found  a 
camp  not  unlike  the  one 
they  had  left,  but  it  was 
larger,  and  contained  more 
men.  The  arrangement  of 
the  beds  was  the  same  as  at 
the  first,  but  there  was  no 
stove  in  the  room.  A  large 
fireplace  opened  at  one  end 
of  the  apartment,  and  a  gen- 
erous fire  was  glowing  with- 
in it.  George  remarked  that 
the  fireplace  was  far  more 
cheerf ul  than  the  stove  ;  and 
Harry  added  that  he  thought 

the  ventilation  must  be  much  better,  as  the  chimney  would  give  a  fine 
draught.  Several  men  were  in  front  of  the  fire,  in  what  is  known  as 
the  "  deacon's  seat ;"  some  smoking  their  pipes,  and  listening  to  stories 


\\      'k     \ 

THE    CHAMPION    8TORY-TKLLER. 


12-t 


THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


which  others  were  telling ;  some  mending  their  socks,  or  putting  stitches 
in  garments  that  had  been  ripped  or  torn  by  contact  with  the  logs  their 
owners  had  been  handling. 

The  champion  story-teller  of  the  party  was  seated  on  a  stool  in  front 
of  the  rest,  and  his  sallies  of  wit  kept  them  in  roars  of  laughter.  He  was 
a  broad-faced  Irishman,  with  a  pair  of  sharp,  twinkling  eyes  that  were 

hardly  ever  without  a  smile  playing 
around  them.  He  was  busy  with 
the  elaboration  of  his  theory  of  the 
origin  and  composition  of  man,  and 
the  ideas  he  set  forth  were  of  a  char- 
acter quite  unknown  to  the  scientific 
world. 

"  There's  Darwin,"  said  he,  "  and 
just  think  how  he  makes  out  that 
man  came  from  the  monkey.  I've 
nothing  to  do  with  him ;  he  is  no 
friend  of  mine,  and  I  never  so  much 
as  met  him  in  all  my  life.  I  never 
bothered  myself  about  Darwin's  the- 
ories, but  I've  got  a  little  theory  of 
my  own." 

"  Well,  let's  have  it,"  said  one  of 
the  listeners. 

"  Why,  my  theory  is  that  a  man  is 
not  a  man  at  all,  but  a  composition." 
"  How  do  you  make  that  out  ?" 
"Don't  you  see?     Man  is  made 
up  of  the  things  he  lives  on.     He 
eats  the  flesh  of  numerous  animals, 
and  therefore  he  acquires  their  at- 
tributes.    The  other  animals  are  dis- 
tinct in  their  characters,  but  the  man 

has  nothing  distinctive  about  him.  Every  animal  has  his  own  peculiar 
food ;  some  live  only  on  vegetables,  like  the  cow ;  and  some  only  on  flesh, 
like  the  tiger;  then  there  are  some  that  live  on  fish  and  nothing  else, 
like  the  otter;  and  some  that  eat  nothing  but  birds.  But  man  eats  every- 
thing that  comes  to  hand,  and  isn't  it  fair  to  call  him  a  composition,  and 
not  an  original  being?" 

"According  to  that,"  one  of  his  hearers  remarked,  "you  would  argue 


PORTRAIT    OF    THE    COMING   MAN. 


CHARLEY  AND  THE  CATAMOUNT.  125 

that  when  a  man  takes  a  breakfast  of  eggs,  bacon,  mutton-chop,  and  fried 
smelts,  he  becomes  hen,  hog,  sheep,  and  fish,  in  proportion  as  he  has  eaten 
of  those  articles." 

"  Or,"  said  another,  "  when  a  man  eats  an  oyster,  a  herring,  a  broiled 
chicken,  and  a  beefsteak  for  dinner,  he  is  mollusk,  fish,  fowl,  and  flesh, 
all  at  once." 

"How  would  it  be,"  asked  a  third,  "when  a  man  eats  bologna-sausage, 
or  a  plate  of  hash,  in  a  cheap  restaurant  in  New  York  2  What  would 
you  make  him  out  then  ?" 

The  laugh  that  followed  this  interrogatory  put  an  end  to  the  argu- 
ments on  the  new  theory  of  the  human  race.  As  the  laugh  died  away 
the  notes  of  a  violin  were  heard,  and  a  song  was  called  for.  The  late 
story-teller  was  for  the  moment  transformed  into  a  vocalist;  perhaps  he 
had  dined  on  one  of  the  song-birds  of  the  forest,  and  the  result  was  pro- 
claiming itself.  A  few  minutes  were  consumed  in  arranging  the  prelimi- 
naries and  deciding  what  the  tune  and  song  should  be,  as  the  player  wished 
to  give  one  thing  and  the  singer  another.  Finally  the  matter  was  adjust- 
ed, and,  after  the  owner  of  the  violin  had  played  through  a  single  stave  of 
the  air,  our  argumentative  friend  struck  up  with  the  following  song: 

"  It's  little  for  glory  I  care ; 

Ambition  is  only  a  fable : 
I'd  as  soon  be  myself  as  lord  mayor, 

With  lots  of  good  things  on  the  table. 
I  like  to  lie  down  in  the  sun, 

And  dream,  \vhile  my  features  are  scorchin', 
That  when  I'm  too  old  for  more  fun 

I'll  marry  a  wife  with  a  fortune. 

"  And  in  winter  with  bacon  and  eggs, 
And  a  place  at  the  fire  a-baskin', 
Talk  with  her  while  I  toasted  my  legs, 

And  sure  there's  no  more  I'd  be  askin'. 
I  haven't  a  genius  for  work — 

'Twas  never  the  gift  of  the  Bradys ; 
But  I'd  make  a  most  elegant  Turk, 

For  I'm  fond  of  good  living  and  babies." 

The  clock  struck  ten  as  the  song  was  finished.  This  was  the  hour  of 
bedtime,  and  the  festivities  of  the  evening  came  to  an  end.  Joe  and  the 
boys  had  listened  to  the  argument  and  the  songs,  much  to  their  amuse- 
ment, and  Harry  remarked  that  the  men  must  have  a  good  time  in  the 
long  evenings  of  winter. 

"  Certainly  they  do,"  said  Joe ;  "  there  are  always  some  musical  char- 


ll>6  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

acters  among  them — men  who  can  sing  a  good  song,  or  play  on  some  in- 
strument— generally  the  violin  :  and,  as  for  these  mountain  fellows,  they 
are  rarely  at  a  loss  for  stories.  Some  of  them  are  witty  and  philosoph- 
ical,'like  the  one  with  the  theory  of  the  character  of  mankind;  but  the 
majority  delight  in  the  marvellous,  and  are  never  weary  of  recounting 
wonderful  adventures  by  flood  and  field. — Here,  Charley,"  he  said  to 
one  of  the  men,  "  before  you  go  to  bed  tell  us  about  your  great  fight  out 
in  Wisconsin  with  the  Indians  and  the  catamount. 

Charley  paused  as  the  rest  of  the  lumbermen  gathered  around.  They 
seconded  Joe's  request,  and  so  he  consented  to  tell  it ;  but  he  prefaced  it 
by  saying  he  could  not  give  all  the  particulars,  as  it  was  getting  late. 

"  There  ain't  no  trees  here,"  said  Charley,  "  like  what  we  used  to  have 
out  in  Wisconsin.  Some  of  'em  used  to  take  us  a  whole  day  to  cut 
through  the  bark,  and  it  would  be  a  week  or  two  before  we  got  the  trunk 
hacked  through  so  she'd  fall.  Some  of  'em  had  hollows  in  'em  so  big 
you  could  drive  a  team  through  without  tonchin',  and  they  used  to  run 
up  sometimes  an  eighth  of  a  mile  high.  Bill  Jones  said  he  had  seen  one 
that  was  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long  and  a  hundred  feet  through  at  the  butt ; 
but  I  always  thought  he  was  lyin',  as  it  ain't  reasonable  to  talk  about  such 
a  tree  as  that. 

"  One  day  when  Bill  and  me  was  Inmberin',  a  hollow  tree  fell  across 
our  path  where  we  was  goin'  along  with  a  big  log  on  the  sled,  and  what 
do  you  think  we  did  P 

Of  course  no  one  could  guess. 

u  Well,  Bill  just  up  and  drove  the  team  right  through  that4  ere  log 
— team,  log,  and  all  went  through  without  touching.  I  never  would  'a' 
believed  it  if  I  hadn't  seen  it  myself. 

"  We  found  the  log  so  large  that  we  thought  we'd  use  it  for  a  house 
the  next  year,  and  when  we  came  back  again  we  went  to  it.  It  was 
just  night  when  we  got  there,  and  we  went  to  work  to  get  supper. 
Bill  was  stirring  the  tea  just  outside  the  door,  when  all  at  once  there  cum 
a  big  catamount  right  down  on  his  back.  Bill  gave  an  awful  yell,  but 
he  hnng  on  to  the  teapot,  and  dashed  the  hot  tea  into  the  critter's  face. 

"  You  never  seen  a  wild-cat  more  confused  and  obfuscated  in  all  your 
life.  The  hair  peeled  off  from  the  front  part  of  his  head  till  he  was  as 
bald  as  a  punkin,  and  his  eyes  was  shut  up  tight  as  a  patent  window.  He 
let  Bill  alone,  and  begun  pitchin'  round  generally,  and  he  got  hold  o'  me 
and  give  me  a  lively  scratchin'.  But  I  managed  to  tie  his  hind  legs  to- 
gether, and  just  as  I  was  reachin'  for  his  forrard  ones,  I  heard  a  yell  that 
was  enough  to  split  the  ears  of  a  cast-iron  mule. 


CHARLEY  AND   THE   CATAMOUNT.  127 

"  I  knew  at  once  it  was  Injuns,  and  Bill  yelled  out  '  Injuns!'  and  made 
for  the  inside  of  the  big  tree.  I  backed  into  the  log  after  him,  and  took 
the  cat  along  with  me,  as  I  had  an  idea  he'd  be  useful  to  us.  There  was 
six  of  them  Injuns,  and  they  stopped  and  had  a  little  palaver  to  know 
what  to  do  next. 

"  Evidently  they  hadn't  seen  the  cat  when  I  dragged  it  in,  or  if  they 
did  they  didn't  suspect  what  it  was. 

"  One  of  the  Injuns  took  a  stand  at  one  end  of  the  log,  and  the  other 
five  run  round  to  drive  us  out.  As  soon  as  I  saw  what  they  was  doin' 
I  tied  a  bunch  of  dry  grass  to  the  cat's  tail,  and  when  I  saw  their  five 
heads  forenenst  the  end,  I  just  cut  the  strings  that  was  round  the  cat's 
feet,  and  at  the  same  instant  touched  a  match  to  the  bunch  of  grass. 

"You  ought  to  'a'  seen  her  go!  A  shootin'-star  isn't  a  comparison, 
arid  a  cannon-ball's  more  like  it.  She  went  plump  among  them  Injuns, 
and  in  less  time  than  I've  been  tellin'  it  she  had  chawed  one  of  'em 
into  pieces  as  fine  as  boardin'-house  hash.  I  wouldn't  'a'  believed  it  if  I 
hadn't  seen  it  myself. 

"  Another  of  'em  dropped  with  a  bullet  from  my  rifle,  and  the  one 
that  was  watching  at  Bill's  end,  he  had  the  same  fate.  The  rest  went 
through  the  bushes  like  scared  rabbits,  and  that  was  the  last  we  seen  of 
'em.  Good-night7  boys." 


128 


THE   YOUNG  NIMEODS. 


CHAPTER   X. 

A  YACHTING  EXPERIENCE.— FROM  NEW  YORK  TO  GREAT  SOUTH  BAY. 

THE  next  day  was  passed  in  the  camp  among  scenes  similar  to  those 
already  described.     Joe  completed  his  business,  and  announced  to 
the  boys  that  they  would  be  off  by  daybreak  of  the  following  morning, 
lie  was  as  good  as  his  word,  and  before  the  sun  rose  above  the  horizon 
they  were  dashing  along  the  road. 


A    YACHTSMAN    AT    HOME. 


A  YACHTING  EXPERIENCE.  129 

In  due  time  they  reached  home,  and  were  welcomed  by  the  Doctor, 
who  had  been  attending  to  the  traps  during  their  absence.  A  few  days 
after  their  return  the  boys  received  letters  that  brought  their  sojourn  in 
Maine  to  an  end,  and  called  them  back  to  the  city.  The  Doctor  accom- 
panied them  on  their  journey,  which  was  made  without  any  incident 
worth  recording.  They  returned  to  their  studies  at  school  with  faces 
reddened  and  browned  by  their  exposure  to  the  pure  atmosphere  of  the 
country,  and  with  a  vigorous  health  that  made  them  the  envy  of  some 
of  their  companions.  Their  school-mates  looked  on  them  as  heroes;  and 
they  were  never  weary  of  telling  their  hunting  experiences  on  the  banks 
of  the  Kennebec,  and  their  journey  to  the  camp  of  the  loggers. 

They  made  good  use  of  their  time,  and  when  the  summer  vacation 
came  the  Doctor  said  he  had  a  new  treat  in  store  for  them  as  a  reward 
for  their  diligence.  He  had  arranged  for  a  short  cruise  in  a  yacht  along 
the  coast,  which  would  give  them  an  opportunity  to  try  their  hands  at 
fishing,  as  they  had  already  tried  them  at  hunting. 

"Be  ready  to  start  to-morrow  morning,"  said  the  Doctor.  "You 
don't  need  much  preparation,  as  everything  we  want  is  on  board  the 
yacht  except  your  personal  baggage.  Take  your  oldest  and  roughest 
clothes — and  you  may  as  well  take  two  or  three  suits,  in  order  to  have  a 
change  in  case  you  get  wet.  Two  or  three  yachting  shirts  of  woollen 
material  and  dark  in  color  will  be  necessary,  and  a  good  suit  of  clothes 
with  white  shirts,  for  going  on  shore.  You  would  do  well  to  take  some 
extra  shoes  along,  as  you  will  want  to  change  occasionally  when  the 
weather  is  rough.  A  large  valise  will  hold  everything  you  need  for  the 
voyage,  which  will  not  be  a  long  one." 

The  boys  acted  on  the  suggestion,  and  long  before  night  they  had 
their  baggage  ready. 

They  were  up  early  in  the  morning;  and  as  the  Doctor  was  quite 
ready,  they  made  an  excellent  start.  The  yacht  that  was  to  carry  them 
was  lying  at  anchor  in  the  Hudson  River,  and  they  drove  straight  to  the 
landing  that  was  nearest,  and  hired  a  skiff  to  take  them  to  their  craft. 
They  were  treated  to  an  amusing  incident  as  they  neared  her,  and  both 
the  boys  laughed  heartily  over  it,  as  soon  as  they  found  that  the  victim 
of  the  occurrence  was  unharmed. 

They  passed  a  skiff  whose  occupants  were  amusing  themselves  by 
hauling  a  seine  in  the  hope  of  taking  some  fish.  They  did  not  appear  to 
be  skilled  either  in  handling  the  boat  or  manipulating  the  seine,  and  just 
as  our  friends  passed  there  was  a  loud  splash  in  the  water.  The  man 
•who  was  reeling  out  the  seine  had  lost  his  balance  and  tumbled  over; 

9 


130 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

,         ;  -    . 


"A  MAS  OVERBOARD! 


and  as  lie  was  very  large  and  very 
heavy  he  made  a  great  disturbance. 
He  went  out  of  sight,  but  soon  re- 
appeared puffing  like  a  porpoise. 
His  companions  hauled  him  over 
the  gunwale  without  much  cere- 
mony, and  the  work  of  seining  fish 
was  abandoned  for  that  of  drying  and  reviving  the  fisherman. 

When  the  skiff  reached  the  side  of  the  yacht  the  boys  jumped  lightly 
to  the  deck,  while  the  Doctor  followed  at  a  more  dignified  pace.  It  took 
but  a  moment  to  hand  up  the  valises,  and  to  pay  the  boatman  and  send 
him  away.  As  everything  was  ready,  the  yacht  was  soon  making  her  way 
down  the  harbor  in  the  direction  of  the  ocean.  The  boys  scrutinized 
every  part  of  the  little  craft,  and  in  less  than  an  hour  there  was  not  a  bolt, 
a  rope,  a  plank,  or  the  head  of  a  nail  even,  that  had  not  come  under  their 
observation.  Their  first  investigation  was  directed  to  her  name  and  pe- 
culiarity of  construction,  and  they  kept  up  a  running  fire  of  questions  on 
the  amiable  Doctor,  till  their  minds  were  stored  with  a  liberal  amount  of 
yachting  knowledge. 


A   YACHTING   EXPERIENCE.  131 

"  She  isn't  a  large  craft,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  as  you  can  readily  perceive. 
She  is  what  we  call  a  centre-board  sloop,  and  her  name  is  I^otos.  The 
lotos  is  a  species  of  water-lily ;  and  as  the  home  of  this  yacht  is  on  the 
water,  we  thought  it  was  not  a  bad  name  for  her." 

"  The  water-lily  stays  in  one  place,"  George  observed,  "  and  that  is 
not  what  is  expected  of  a  yacht.  It  is  to  be  hoped  she  can  sail  a  great 
deal  better  than  the  flower  she  is  named  for." 

"  I  know  what  a  sloop  is,"  said  Harry ;  "  it  is  a  vessel  with  one  mast, 
while  a  schooner  has  two.  But  I  don't  know  what  you  mean  by  'centre- 
board.' It  is  a  term  I  never  heard  before." 

"  Can  you  tell  me  what  a  keel  is  ?"  the  Doctor  asked. 

"Certainly,"  was  the  reply;  "the  keel  is  the  principal  timber  in  a 
ship,  and  extends  along  the  middle  of  the  bottom  from  bow  to  stern." 

"Except  in  flat  -  bottomed  ships  that  have  no  keels,"  interrupted 
George. 

"  Quite  right,  both  of  you,"  the  Doctor  responded.  "  Now,  the  keel  is 
of  great  assistance  in  steering  a  ship,  as  it  prevents  her  falling  off,  or  slid- 
ing to  one  side,  when  the  wind  is  blowing  against  her  beam.  And  the 
centre-board  is  a  substitute  for  a  keel,  or  rather,  it  is  a  device  by  which  a 
boat  may  have  a  keel  when  she  needs  one,  and  be  relieved  of  it  when  it 
is  not  wanted." 

"  How  is  that  ?" 

"A  strong  plank  is  arranged  in  the  middle  of  the  boat  so  that  it  can 
be  raised  or  lowered  at  will.  It  goes  directly  through  the  bottom  when; 
the  keel  would  be  if  she  had  one,  and  by  means  of  a  block  and  pulley  it 
can  be  managed  with  the  greatest  ease." 

Then  the  Doctor  exhibited  the  arrangement  of  the  centre-board  to  his 
young  companions,  and  afterward  they  went  below  to  examine  the  inte- 
rior of  the  boat.  The  case  that  enclosed  the  centre-board  rose  through 
the  middle  of  the  cabin  ;  on  each  side  of  this  casing  there  was  a  leaf  of  a 
table,  that  could  be  raised  when  dinner-time  arrived,  and  when  not  wanted 
it  could  hang  in  its  place  as  any  well-behaved  table  should  do.  There 
were  two  rooms,  each  accommodating  one  person,  and  the  sofas  in  the 
cabin  would  furnish  comfortable  sleeping- quarters  for  two  more.  The 
steward  had  a  pantry  where  all  the  table-ware  was  kept,  and  there  was  a 
neat  little  kitchen  or  galley  beyond  it,  where  the  cooking  for  the  party 
wras  done.  The  captain  and  his  crew  of  four  men  were  quartered  in  the 
bows  of  the  yacht,  and  while  there  was  room  enough  for  everybody  and 
everything,  there  was  not  a  cubic  inch  of  space  allowed  to  go  to  waste. 

They  had  taken  a  very  light  breakfast  before  starting  from  home,  and 


132 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


were  not  at  all  sorry  to  see  that  the  steward  was  getting  the  table  ready 
while  the  Lotos  was  making  her  way  down   the  harbor.     The  Doctor 
warned  them  that  they  might  be  dis- 
turbed by  the  sea,  but  said  it  was  a 
good  rule  not  to  borrow  trouble  in 
advance,  and  if  their  appetites  were 
favorable,  they  had  better  partake  of 
what  had  been  set  out. 

They  were  hungry  beyond  a 
doubt,  if  we  may  judge  by  the  vigor- 
ous attack  they  made  on  the  cutlets 
and  other  things  on  the  table.  The 
steward  smiled  as  he  looked  at  the 
youths,  and  thought  how  soon  all 
those  edibles  would  be  thrown  over 
the  side,  and  the  boys  twisted  with 
the  agonies  of  sea-sickness.  He  wras 
doomed  to  be  disappointed,  as  they 
maintained  their  condition,  and  were 
not  disturbed  in  the  least.  The  Doctor  said  he  had  thought  all  along 
they  would  be  good  sailors,  and  the  result  showed  the  correctness  of  his 
theories. 

They  passed  Sandy  Hook,  the  low  point  of  land  that  marks  the  en- 
trance of  New  York  Bay,  and  is  both  a  delight  and  a  fear  to  the  mariner 
who  approaches  the  Commercial  Metropolis  of  the  United  States.  Long 
before  they  reached  it  the  boat  had  begun  to  rise  and  fall  with  the  waves, 
and  now  she  tossed  gracefully,  as  though  conscious  of  her  ability  to  carry 
her  passengers  and  crew  in  safety  wherever  they  might  wish  to  go.  The 
day  was  delightful,  the  air  being  of  a  temperature  that  was  neither  too 
warm  nor  too  cool  for  comfort,  while  the  breeze  was  just  enough  to  carry 
the  Lotos  at  an  easy  pace,  without  dashing  the  water  over  the  bows,  or 
otherwise  making  things  uncomfortable  for  the  young  landsmen. 


THE    STEWARD. 


OCEAN    SCENE   NEAR   SANDY  HOOK. 


133 


Outside  the  Hook  they  met  a  large  steamer  going  in,  and  a  few  minutes 
later  another  passed  them  on  her  way  to  Europe.  Half  a  dozen  sailing 
ships  were  in  sight  at  once,  some  with  all  their  sails  spread  to  the  breeze, 
while  others  had  only  canvas  enough  set  to  keep  them  in  motion.  There 
were  many  fishing  and  pleasure  boats  darting  here  and  there,  and  the 
Lotos  went  within  a  few  yards  of  one  on  which  a  party  was  endeavoring 
to  have  a  good  time  and  catch  some  blue-fish.  They  were  sailing  along 
at  a  fine  rate,  and  had  several  lines  trailing  over  the  stern  of  their  craft. 
George  thought  they  were  too  closely  packed  for  comfort,  as  there  were 
eight  or  nine  of  them,  besides  the  man  at  the  helm.  Three  women  were 
of  the  party ;  two  were  not  feeling  particularly  well,  and  wanted  to  go 
home,  but  the  third  was  fishing  away  as  merrily  as  the  best  of  the  men, 
and  enjoying  the  fun. 


A    FLEASUK 


"We  shall  have  some  practical  acquaintance  with  blue-fishing,"  said 
the  Doctor,  "  and  then  I  will  tell  you  about  it." 

The  Doctor  had  previously  instructed  the  skipper  of  the  Lotos  as  to 
the  first  port  he  desired  to  visit,  leaving  it  to  that  worthy  to  shape  his 


THE   YOUNG  N1MBOD8. 


FIUL    ISLAND    PASTURE. 


course  as  lie  thought  best.  When  they  were  fairly  out  at  sea  the  yacht 
was  headed  to  the  eastward,  passing  Coney  Island  and  Eockaway,  and 
steering  for  the  entrance  of  Great  South  Bay.  It  was  a  run  of  about 
thirty  miles,  and  in  a  little  less  than  four  hours  they  were  entering  the 

bay,  and  then  the  boys 
found  out  some  of  the 
uses  of  a  centre-board. 
The  water  at  the  entrance 
of  Great  South  Bay  is 
quite  shallow,  except  at 
high  tide,  and  when  the 
Lotos  passed  the  bar  it 
was  necessary  to  draw*  up 
the  centre  -  board  to  pre- 
vent its  scraping  on  the 
sand.  Harry  remarked 
that  they  could  not  have 
served  a  keel  in  the  same 
way;  and  the  skipper  said 

that  if  they  had  had  a  keel  instead  of  a  centre-board,  they  would  have 
been  compelled  to  wait  some  hours  for  the  tide. 

Great  South  Bay  is  a  pretty  sheet  of  water  on  the  side  of  Long  Island 
nearest  the  ocean.  It  lies  between  Long  Island  and  a  strip  of  sand  that 
answers  the  geographical  definition  of  an  island,  as  it  is  surrounded  by 
water.  It  has  a  length  of  thirty  miles,  and  a  width  that  averages  not 
more  than  half  a  mile,  while  the  vegetation  is  very  scanty  indeed.  The 
principal  and  only  practicable  entrance  is  the  one  by  which  our  friends 
found  their  way  into  the  bay,  and  it  is  known  to  the  fishermen  and  others 
as  Fire  Island  Inlet.  A  fashionable  hotel  stands  on  the  sandy  stretch 
near  the  inlet,  and  hundreds  of  people  go  there  from  New  York  every 
summer  to  inhale  the  cool  breezes  of  the  Atlantic.  The  great  majority 
of  the  summer  visitors  designate  the  hotel  as  the  "  Fire  Island  House," 
and  the  beach  as  Fire  Island.  The  name  properly  belongs  to  a  small 
island  in  the  bay,  and  tradition  says  the  early  inhabitants  were  accustomed 
to  display  their  enterprise  by  building  fires  there,  so  as  to  lure  ships  to 
their  destruction.  They  had  a  bad  reputation  as  wreckers  in  the  early 
part  of  this  century ;  and  another  tradition  is  that  when  they  saw  a  ship 
dangerously  near  the  land  near  the  close  of  day,  they  set  their  wits  to 
work  to  make  sure  that  she  came  ashore.  They  fastened  a  lantern  to  a 
horse's  neck,  and  led  him  along  the  beach ;  and  thus  the  up-and-down 


GREAT   SOUTH   BAY. 


135 


motion  was  easily  mistaken  for  the  light  of  another  ship,  and  deceived 
the  mariners  into  shaping  their  course  so  as  to  bring  them  on  the  sands. 
The  natives  made  a  good  thing  out  of  the  business,  but  it  came  to  an 
end  when  the  Government  made  a  careful  survey  of  the  coast,  and  estab- 
lished light-houses  wherever  they  were  needed. 

The  natives  of  the  region  bordering  on  Great  South  Bay  at  the  pres- 
ent time  are  a  peaceful  and  for  the  most  part  a  law-abiding  race,  and  the 
hiring  of  ships  on  shore  by  false  lights  is  no  longer  practised.  They  earn 
a  comfortable  living  by  catching  fish  for  the  New  York  market,  and  at- 
tending to  the  wants  of  the  hundreds  and  thousands  of  men  and  women 
who  go  to  South  Bay  in  summer  to  escape  the  heat  and  fever  of  the  great 
city.  Hotels,  villas,  and  boarding-houses  are  numerous  all  along  from 
the  eastern  to  the  western  end  of  the  bay,  and  every  year  the  region  is 
becoming  more  and  more  popular.  On  pleasant  days  in  summer  the  bay 
is  dotted  and  stippled  with  dozens  and  dozens  of  sail-boats  and  yachts, 
whose  white  wings  stand  out  in  sharp  contrast  to  the  dark  waters  beneath 


I  M  LKl'HISK. 


them.     Once  the  bay  abounded  in  iish,  and  the  old  inhabitants  have  mar- 
vellous stories  to  tell  of  the  hauls  that  were  made  in  days  of  long  ago. 
The  skipper  of  the  Lotos  was  a  native  of  Suffolk  County,  which  bor- 


136 


THE  YOUNG  NIMEODS. 


ders  on  the  bay,  and  as  they  sailed  up  the  channel  he  told  the  boys  how 
they  used  to  catch  fish  there  when  he  was  a  boy. 

"I  remember,"  said  he,  "my  father  took  me  out  one  afternoon  to 
show  me  how  to  make  myself  useful  on  a  boat.  We  sailed  up  and  down 
the  channel,  right  in  front  of  where  the  Olympic  Club  is  now,  and  in  an 
hour's  time  we  took  thirty-seven  as  fine  blue-fish  as  you'd  wish  to  see." 

"  Can't  we  catch  some  there 
now  ?"  Harry  inquired.  "  I  should 
like  so  much  to  take  a  blue-fish  !" 

"We  might  troll  for  them  a 
week  without  catching  one.  The 
only  way  we  can  get  any  fish  in  the 
bay  now  is  by  'chumming'  for 
them." 

George  .asked  what  was  meant 
by  "  chumming,"  and  the  skipper 
explained  that  it  was  a  mode  of 
feeding  the  fish,  and  attracting  them 
to. the  vicinity  of  a  boat.  "You 
take  a  lot  of  moss -bunkers,"  said 
he,  "and  chop  them  into  little 
pieces.  You  keep  a  small  stream 
of  this  '  chum '  going  over  the  side 
of  the  boat,  and  it  floats  off  with  the 
tide.  The  fish  strike  the  trail,  and 
follow  it  up;  and  then  they  bite  at 
the  hooks  that  are  baited  with  slices 
of  moss-bunkers — the  same  as  the 
chum  is  made  of.  The  moss-bunker 
is  a  very  oily  fish,  and  makes  splen- 
did bait ;  its  other  name  is  manha- 
den,  and  it  belongs  to  the  herring 

family  and  genus  Alosa.  Millions  of  these  fish  are  caught  every  year. 
The  oil  is  removed  by  pressing  and  boiling,  and  the  refuse,  after  the  oil 
has  been  extracted,  is  used  for  fertilizing  land.  Great  quantities  of  the 
fish  are  spread  on  the  lands  along  the  coast  for  manure,  and  the  stench 
that  arises  from  them  is  something  abominable." 

The  skipper  could  not  find  language  strong  enough  for  a  satisfactory 
denunciation  of  the  folly  of  his  old  neighbors  in  neglecting  their  own 
interests.  "They  pay  no  attention  to  the  law,"  said  he,  "that  forbids 


ANCIENT    INHABITANT. 


FROM  NEW  YORK  TO  GREAT  SOUTH  BAY. 


137 


fishing  at  certain  times  and  in  certain  ways.  The  sole  object  of  the  en- 
actment is  to  protect  the  fish,  and  keep  the  supply  good.  Many  of  the 
people  understand  it,  and  want  to  see  the  laws  enforced,  but  they  are 
overawed  by  a  minority  of  the  fishermen,  who  sweep  the  channel  with 


ON    THE    BEACH. 


drag-nets,  erect  pounds  or  pens,  where  the  fish  are  entrapped,  and  do 
other  things  to  drive  away  and  destroy  nearly  everything  that  comes  into 
the  bay.  A  few  years  ago  the  blue-fish  got  to  coming  in  here  for  the 
chum  that  \vas  fed  over  from  the  boats,  and  there  was  good  fun.  A  great 
many  gentlemen  came  down  from  New  York,  and  spent  lots  of  money 
for  moss-bunkers  and  hiring  boats,  and  the  fishermen  were  making  a  good 
thing  out  of  it.  I've  seen  fifty  boats  out  in  the  channel  at  one  time,  and 
every  one  of  those  boats  was  hired  by  somebody  at  a  good  price ;  but,  as 
soon  as  the  fish  got  to  running  well,  the  lawless  fellows  went  to  sweeping 
the  channel  with  nets,  and  the  whole  thing  was  spoiled.  Gentlemen  quit 
coming  because  they  did  not  care  to  spend  money  and  have  no  fun  in  re- 
turn, and  then  the  boatmen  complained  they  had  no  patronage,  and  times 
were  hard.  It  was  their  own  fault;  I've  told  them  so  a  dozen  times,  but 
they  don't  seem  to  understand  it." 

"  I  would  suggest,"  remarked  the  Doctor,  "  that  the  remedy  is  quite 
in  their  own  hands.  You  say  there  are  proper  laws  for  the  protection  of 
the  fish,  but  they  are  not  observed." 

"Exactly  so,"  was  the  skipper's  reply.  "Many  of  the  men  believe 
in  the  laws  and  obey  them,  but  there  are  some,  quite  a  minority,  that  do 
not.  They  are  the  ones  that  catch  the  fish  in  illegal  ways,  and  ruin  the 
business." 


138 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


"Precisely,"  responded  the  Doctor.  "Now,  let  the  law-abiding  men 
in  each  village  form  an  association  to  compel  the  enforcement  of  the 
laws.  They  know  perfectly  well  the  names  of  the  violators,  and  can  re- 
port them  to  the  proper  officials ;  and  every  case  should  be  reported  at 
once,  without  fear  or  favor,  and  the  proper  punishment  demanded.  A 
little  justice  would  bring  the  rascals  to  their  senses,  and  make  them  law- 
abiding  citizens.  Concert  of  action  will  do  wonders  in  a  great  many 
things,  and  there  is  an  excellent  opportunity  to  make  use  of  it  here." 

The  Lotos  sailed  up  the  channel  of  the  bay  about  six  miles,  and  came 
to  anchor  in  front  of  the  grounds  of  the  Olympic  Club.  The  yacht  of 
the  club  and  several  smaller  boats  were  lying  there  as  if  to  welcome  her; 
and  as  she  approached  the  anchorage  a  flag  was  run  to  the  top  of  a  tall 
staff  near  the  water's  edge.  A  small  skiff  came  out  from  the  club's  dock 
at  the  mouth  of  a  narrow  creek,  and  the  Doctor  was  soon  shaking  hands 
with  the  rotund  "commodore,"  who  filled  the  office  of  president  of  the 


SUMMER    SCENE    NEAR    SOUTH    BAY. 


Olympic.  The  partjr  went  on  shore,  and  was  welcomed  by  several  mem- 
bers of  the  association.  They  were  shown  through  the  buildings  of  the 
club,  and  expressed  their  admiration  for  the  general  arrangements  of  the 
establishment.  Harry  made  note  of  the  fact  that  the  club  had  a  dining- 
room  and  a  billiard-room  under  one  roof;  besides  a  three-story  building 


FROM  NEW  YORK  TO  GREAT  SOUTH  BAY. 


139 


with  parlor  and  sleeping -rooms,  and  three  other  buildings  divided  into 
rooms  that  were  the  private  property  of  members.  And  he  also  observed 
that  the  club  made  its  own  gas,  possessed  a  large  ice-house,  and  that  the 
grounds  comprised  nearly  twenty  acres  of  land,  carefully  laid  out  into 
gardens  and  lawn.  lie  thought  the  club  men  ought  to  have  a  comfort- 
able time  there,  and  his  opinion  was  strengthened  when  he  looked  around 
and  saw  the  rounded  figures  and  ruddy  faces  of  the  gentlemen  who  wore 
the  dark -blue  uniform  with  its  gilt  buttons  bearing  the  initials  of  the 
association. 

"  The  club  was  started  nearly  forty  years  ago,"  said  one  of  the  mem- 
bers, "and  times  have  changed  with  us  a  good  deal.  The  first  year  we 
lived  under  a  tent  made  of  the  sail  of  a  boat  stretched  over  a  pole,  and 
we  did  our  cooking  in  the  open  air;  we  had  no  servants,  as  we  couldn't 
afford  such  a  luxury ;  and  when  the  supply  of  clams  and  fish  gave  out  we 
generally  went  hungry.  The  first  Olympic  was  vastly  different  from  this, 
but  we  had  lots  of  fun  there,  in  spite  of  our  rough  work  and  plain  fare." 


TIIK    FIKST    OLYMPIC. 


140 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  XL 


FISHING   INCIDENTS  IN   GREAT  SOUTH  BAY.—  CATCHING   A   SHARK. 


spent  an  hour  or  two  in  the  inspection  of  the  premises  of  the 
-*-  Olympic,  and  in.  pleasant  conversation  with  the  gentlemen  to  whom 
the  youths  had  been  introduced.  Harry  was  of  an  inquiring  turn  of 
mind,  and  had  various  questions  to  ask,  and  George  was  not  far  behind 
him  in  making  interrogatories.  One  of  the  queries  related  to  the  occupa- 
tions of  the  gentlemen  during  their  stay  at  the  club.  The  commodore 
said  this  was  a  difficult  question  to  answer,  but  he  would  do  his  best  to 
make  it  plain. 

"Some  of  the  members,"  said  he,  "are  fond  of  sailing,  but  don't  care 
about  catching  fish  ;  then  there  are  some  that  like  fishing,  but  are  not 


: 


TAKING    IT    EASY. 


FISHING   INCIDENTS   IN   GREAT   SOUTH   BAY. 


enthusiastic  sailors.  The  result  is,  they  divide  up  the  club's  yacht  and 
boats  between  them,  and  go  out  on  different  days.  There  are  several  that 
never  venture  on  the  water,  although  they  wear  the  uniform  of  yachts- 
men ;  and  there  are  some  that  would  like  to  be  on  the  water  all  the  time, 
and  more  too.  One  gentleman 
likes  to  catch  blue-fish,  and  despises 
anything  less  active,  while  another 
says  that  a  clam  or  an  oyster  is  as 
lively  a  game-fish  as  he  wishes  to 
tackle.  One  member  lies  in  a  ham- 
mock all  day,  and  would  stay  there 
all  night  if  the  mosquitoes  would 
let  him  alone ;  and  another  thinks 
there  is  nothing  equal  to  lying  on 
the  ground  and  smoking  his  pipe, 
while  he  keeps  the  flies  away  with 
a  handful  of  grass.  There  he  is 
now,"  said  the  commodore,  point- 
ing to  the  subject  of  his  conversa- 
tion, who  was  evidently  enjoying 
himself,  and  caring  very  little  what 
they  said  about  him.  "He  has 
been  there  two  hours  to  ray  certain 
knowledge,  and  nothing  but  the 
gong  for  dinner  will  bring  him  to 
a  standing  position." 

"Perhaps  a  snake  might  do  it," 
the  Doctor  suggested. 

"  Yes,  perhaps,"  was  the  reply ; 
"  but  we  don't  keep  snakes  here,  or 
at  any  rate  we  do  not  encourage 
them  to  stay  around  the  premises." 

Further  conversation  on  the  sub- 
ject developed  the  fact  that  the  Olympians  were  in  the  habit  of  amusing 
themselves  in  any  way  they  liked,  as  long  as  they  did  not  interfere  with 
any  one  else.  The  younger  ones  had  more  taste  for  the  water  than  their 
elders,  and  went  frequently  on  fishing  and  sailing  excursions.  The  pure 
air  of  the  sea,  and  the  facilities  for  doing  nothing,  were  the  attractions  of 
the  place,  and  everybody  did  his  best  to  enjoy  them. 

The  party  spent  the  night  on  shore,  and  the  next  morning  it  was  pro- 


AN    OLYMPIAN    AML'SKMICNT. 


142  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

posed  to  "give  the  blue-fish  a  shake  up."  The  Lotos  was  left  at  her 
moorings,  and  the  Doctor  and  the  boys  embarked  on  a  "  cat-boat "  that 
was  loaned  to  them  by  one  of  the  members  of  the  club.  The  boys  won- 
dered why  they  did  not  go  in  the  Lotos,  and  the  Doctor  explained  that 
she  was  much  too  large  for  the  wants  of  a  blue-fishing  party,  and,  besides, 
the  business  was  not  altogether  cleanly,  and  they  did  not  wish  to  soil  the 
decks  of  the  yacht. 

"  Why  do  they  call  it  a  cat-boat?"  Harry  asked. 

"  We  must  refer  that  question  to  the  boatman,"  said  the  Doctor,  as 
he  turned  to  the  man  at  the  tiller.  "  Why  do  you  call  this  a  cat-boat  ?" 

"Because  that's  the  name  of  it,"  was  the  ready  answer.  "I  don't 
know  any  other  reason.  They  were  always  called  cat-boats  as  long  as 
I  could  remember,  and  nobody  ever  told  me  why:" 

"  I  never  met  any  one  yet  who  could  tell  me  where  the  name  came 
from,"  the  Doctor  continued,  turning  toward  Harry,  "  and  I  have  asked 
the  question  a  hundred  times." 

"  The  name  refers  to  the  rig  of  the  boat,"  said  the  man  at  the  tiller. 
"  You  see  that  the  mast  of  a  cat-boat  is  stepped  very  far  forward,  almost 
in  the  very  bows  of  her.  She  has  no  jib  at  all,  and  so  she  is  very  easy  to 
handle.  When  she  goes  about,  all  you  have  to  do  is  to  turn  the  tiller  and 
the  thing  is  done.  You  have  no  jib  to  carry  over,  and  she  falls  into  the 
wind  with  the  greatest  ease." 

"  It  is  an  easy  thing  to  handle,"  responded  the  Doctor,  "  but  it  has 
a  greater  tendency  to  capsize  than  some  other  boats." 

"That's  true,"  the  skipper  answered  ;  "but  any  craft  is  dangerous  in 
the  hands  of  an  incompetent  person.     There  are  two  or  three  rules  for 
sailing  a  cat-boat,  and  if  you  stick  to  them  you  will  find  her  as  safe  as 
anything  that  floats." 
*  "  What  are  they  ?" 

"  'Luff  her  when  she  breezes,'  is  one  of  'em ;  and  '  have  your  peak  hal- 
yards always  where  you  can  reach  'em,'  is  another.  A  man  who  knows 
how  to  sail  a  cat-boat  will  never  let  go  the  main  sheet  when  a  squall 
comes,  but  that  is  the  very  thing  a  greenhorn  does,  and  it's  almost  cer- 
tain to  send  her  over.  Nine  times  out  of  ten  when  a  boat  is  capsized  it 
is  because  the  man  at  the  tiller  wasn't  paying  proper  attention  to  her,  or 
did  the  wrong  thing  when  the  gust  struck  him." 

Harry  said  he  presumed  the  explanation  was  all  right,  but  he  did  not 
know  the  meaning  of  the  terms  used  by  the  skipper. 

The  Doctor  explained  that "  luffing  "  meant  bringing  the  head  of  the 
boat  round  so  that  it  pointed  into  the  wind,  and  made  the  sail  present  a 


SAILING   IN   A   CAT-BOAT. 


THE    CAT-BOAT. 


smaller  .ingle  to  the  breeze  than  when  it  was  blow- 
ing directly  against  the  beam  or  side.     The  main- 
sheet  was  the  rope  that  con- 
trolled   the    boom,    or    lower 
stick,  to    which  the   sail   was 
fastened  ;    and  the  peak  hal- 
yards were  the  rope  or  ropes 
that  managed  the  upper 
stick,  or  "  gaff." 

"  Look      out 
for  your  heads!" 
said    the    skip- 
per ;  "  we're  go- 
ingaboutnow." 

The  three 
pleasure  -  seek- 
ers "ducked" 
their  heads  as 
the  boat  came 
around  into  the 

wind.  The  boom  swung  over,  and  took  its  place  on  the  side  opposite  to 
where  it  had  been  a  few  moments  before.  The  boat  had  leaned  over  to 
the  right,  but  now  she  was  leaning  to  the  left,  and  compelled  the  pas- 
sengers to  change  their  seats. 

"We  have 'gone  about' or 'tacked,'"  said  the  Doctor.  "The  opera- 
tion of  going  about  is  called  'jibing'  by  the  boatmen  along  the  coast." 

"What  are  those  boats  doing  out  there?"  George  asked,  as  he  pointed 
to  a  group  at  anchor  in  the  bay. 

"  Them's  clammers,"  said  the  skipper.  "  They're  raking  clams  for  a 
living." 

"  Great  South  Bajr,"  said  the  Doctor,  "is  a  favorite  ground  for  clams. 
They  were  once  found  here  in  numbers  apparently  inexhaustible,  and 
hundreds  of  men  made  a  living  by  raking  for  clams  to  sell  in  the  New 
York  market.  The  whole  bottom  of  the  bay  seemed  to  be  paved  with 
them,  and  in  some  places  the  beds  appeared  to  be  several  inches  thick. 
But  the  business  was  overdone  in  the  same  way  that  the  fishing  was 
spoiled.  A  lot  of  men,  who  neither  thought  nor  cared  for  the  future, 
raked  the  bay  clean  from  one  end  to  the  other:  they  lived  in  their  boats 
and  stuck  to  the  business,  selling  all  their  clams,  large  and  small,  for  any 
price  they  could  get.  In  consequence  of  their  folly,  they  have  been  driv- 


144  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

en  into  other  pursuits,  as  the  work  of  clamming  is  not  at  all  profitable 
now,  even  for  the  smaller  number  of  men  engaged  in  it.  It  barely  makes 
a  living  for  the  clammers,  and  nothing  more.  The  clams  from  this  bay 
are  considered  the  finest  on  the  coast,  at  least  by  those  who  live  in  this 
part  of  Long  Island." 

The  Doctor  intimated  to  the  skipper  that  they  would  like  a  few  clams 
to  taste,  and  so  the  latter  passed  near  a  skiff  on  the  clam-grounds  and 
hailed  its  occupant.  The  cat-boat  swung  into  the  wind  and  stopped,  and 
the  skiff  dropped  along-side ;  a  bucketful  of  clams  was  speedily  obtained 
and  paid  for,  and  then  the  cat-boat  stood  away  on  its  course  down  the 
bay. 

During  the  brief  halt  among  the  clammers,  the  boys  observed  that 
the  operators  were  provided  with  curious  rakes  with  very  long  handles. 
The  teeth  of  the  rake  were  curved  into  a  half-circle,  and  were  close  enough 
together  to  retain  the  clams,  while  they  allowed  the  mud  and  sand  to 
strain  through.  The  rake  was  thrown  from  the  boat  as  far  as  possible 
by  means  of  the  handle,  and  then  by  a  comical,  wiggling  motion  the  holder 
gradually  brought  it  to  a  perpendicular  position.  Then  it  was  lifted  to 
the  deck  of  the  boat ;  whatever  clams  it  contained  were  emptied  out,  and 
then  the  process  of  raking  was  renewed.  George  thought  the  life  of  a 
clammer  must  be  rather  monotonous,  as  the  capture  of  the  bivalve  did  not 
require  any  particular  courage  or  skill ;  but  the  skipper  told  him  that 
clams  had  been  known  to  fight  vigorously  for  their  rights,  and  he  showed 
a  large  scar  on  his  arm,  which  he  averred  was  made  by  a  South  Bay  clam 
several  years  before. 

"  I  got  that  scar,"  said  he,  "  over  by  Dave  Sammis's  hotel  one  morn- 
ing in  October.  The  house  was  closed  for  the  season,  and  I  was  helping 
Dave  fix  things  up  for  winter.  The  clams  used  to  come  around  for  the 
scraps  that  the  cooks  threw  out  from  the  kitchen,  and  as  long  as  business 
was  good  and  there  was  plenty  to  eat  they  didn't  make  no  trouble.  After 
the  house  shut  up  there  wasn't  any  more  scraps,  and  they  grew  as  raven- 
ous as  they  say  wolves  do  in  countries  where  the  game  gets  buried  up  in 
the  snow,  and  the  wolves  can't  find  it.  Sometimes  they  gnaw  off  the 
posts  under  the  house,  and  I  suppose  it  must  cost  Dave  a  hundred  dollars 
every  year  for  the  posts  the  clams  chaw  off. 

"  That  morning  it  was  cold  and  frosty,  and  more  than  five  hundred 
great  bull  clams  was  round  the  house,  making  a  great  noise  with  their 
roaring  and  fighting.  They'd  chase  each  other  up  and  down  along  the 
sand,  and  I  tell  you  when  a  clam  sets  out  to  run,  and  starts  in  dead  ear- 
nest, there's  no  stopping  him.  One  of  'em  was  gnawing  away  at  the  post 


A   BATTLE   WITH   A    CLAM. 


145 


CLAMMING    IN    GREAT    SOUTH    BAY. 


under  the  bar-room,  and  I  told  Dave  I'd 
go  down  and  drive  him  off.  Dave  told  me 
to  be  careful,  but  I  thought  there  wasn't 
any  danger,  arid  so  down  I  went. 

"  Well,  gentlemen,  that  clam  ran,  but 
he  ran  for  me,  instead  of  going  the  other 
way.  Before  I  knew  what  he  was  about, 
he  clinched  me  by  the  arm,  and  we  had  it 
tough  for  three  or  four  minutes.  I  might 
have  got  the  worst  of  it  if  Dave  hadn't 
come  down  with  an  ax  and  settled  the  fel- 
low. If  you  don't  believe  what  I  say,  you 
can  ask  Dave  Sammis,  and  he'll  tell  you  all  about  it.  I  tell  you,  gentle- 
men, life  on  South  Bay  is  a  serious  matter,  what  with  clamming,  and 
sharking,  and  the  other  dangers." 

"  Do  they  have  sharks  here  ?"  said  one  of  the  boys.  "  I  supposed  that 
sharks  were  only  found  in  warmer  waters  than  this." 

"  Certainly,"  answered  the  boatman,  "  there's  lots  of  sharks  in  South 
Bay,  but  they  are  not  the  kind  that  eat  people.  Nobody  was  ever  eaten 
up  by  any  of  the  sharks  round  here,  but  I've  heard  of  men  being  bit  by 
'em  when  they  were  in  swimming." 

"  The  story  of  the  fighting  clam,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  is  open  to  suspi- 
cion, but  the  shark  does  abound  here,  and  I  have  had  the  pleasure  of  catch- 
ing him.  There's  one  now,"  he  continued,  as  he  pointed  to  a  boat  a  short 
distance  away,  where  a  couple  of  men  were  having  a  lively  time  with  a 

10 


146 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


large  fish,  which  the  boatman  was  vigorously  pounding  with  an  oar  in 
order  to  quiet  hi  in. 

"  That's  a  shark,  sure  enough,"  said  the  skipper  of  the  cat  -  boat. 
"We'll  sail  by  and  have  a  good  look  at  him." 

Suiting  the  action  to  the  word,  he  steered  the  cat-boat  so  as  to  pass 
close  to  the  shark-fishers.  The  latter  were  evidently  unaccustomed  to  the 
strange  fish  they  had  hooked,  and  were  chiefly  occupied  in  keeping  out  of 
his  way,  and  kicking  at  him  with  their  boots.  The  shark  was  a  slender 
fish,  about  five  feet  long,  with  a  gray  back  and  white  belly,  and  a  mouth 
that  opened  way  down  under  his  chin,  as  though  it  had  been  placed  there 


CATCHING    A    SIIAUK. 


by  mistake.  He  was  snapping  at  everything  within  his  reach,  and  threw 
himself  around  very  actively.  The  vigorous  blows  from  the  oar  finally 
settled  him,  and  a  knife  in  his  throat  finished  the  business.  It  was  excit- 


CATCHING   A   SHARK. 


147 


ing  sport  while  it  lasted,  and  botli  the  boys  thought  it  must  be  capital 
fun  to  take  a  shark,  provided  he  was  not  a  very  large  one. 

"  I  was  at  the  Olympic  Club  one  summer,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  when 
two  of  the  members  were  out  one  day  with  the  yacht-,  and  saw  some  men 
having  a  fight  with  a  shark ;  so  they  anchored  close  by,  and  put  out  a 
line  just  for  the  fun  of  the  thing.  In  half  an  hour  they  had  a  six-foot 
shark  along-side,  and,  after  a  vigorous  fight,  they  captured  him,  and  brought 
him  home  in  triumph.  A  few  days  afterward  they  took  two  sharks  in 
one  afternoon,  and  for  the  rest  of  the  season  they  were  famous  as  shark- 
iishers,  and  unwilling  to  pursue  any  smaller  game. 


SHARK-FISHING    ON    THI-:    FLORIDA    COAST. 

"  Down  on  the  coast  of  Florida,"  he  continued,  "  is  the  place  for 
shark-fishing  in  all  its  glory.  I've  seen  them  there  so  thick  that  their 
back  fins,  sticking  out  of  water,  could  be  counted  by  the  dozen  at  once : 
they  generally  swim  so  near  the  surface  that  their  back  fins  are  visible, 
and  this  is  the  cause  of  many  of  them  coming  to  grief.  The  fins  can  be 
seen  for  a  long  distance,  and  the  fishers  are  able  to  get  quite  near  them 
by  simply  following  the  mark  on  the  water. 

"  I  was  out  one  day  in  a  sail-boat  with  two  others,  when  we  saw  a 
school  of  sharks  a  quarter  of  a  mile  or  more  to  windward.  We  worked 
around  so  as  to  get  among  them  as  quietly  as  possible,  and  in  course  of 
time  we  were  not  more  than  two  yards  from  a  fine  fellow  at  least  ten 
feet  long.  We  had  a  harpoon  of  the  kind  used  by  whalemen,  and  a  stout 


THE  YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


line  for  holding  it.     When  a  good  chance  came  we  threw  the  harpoon 
into  the  shark's  sides,  and  made  the  line  fast  to  the  side  of  the  boat. 


FISH    FROM    THE    BAY. 


"  He  went  away  with  us  like  a  race-horse,  and  towed  the  boat  so  fast 
that  the  spray  rose  around  our  bows,  and  almost  drenched  us.  Occasion- 
ally he  doubled,  and  once  he  went  around  so  quick  and  short  as  to  give 
the  boat  an  unpleasant  twist,  and  nearly  threw  me  into  the  water.  He 
dragged  us  a  couple  of  miles,  and  then  his  strength  gave  out  and  he 
slowed  down.  We  gradually  drew  in  the  line,  and  got  him  near  enough 
to  put  a  lance  into  his  neck  and  kill  him.  Then  we  towed  him  in,  and 
found  that  he  measured  ten  feet  and  three  inches  when  he  was  stretched 
out  on  the  dock.  Several  times  I  had  a  similar  experience,  and  can  assure 
you  it  was  very  exciting  while  it  lasted." 

"What  other  fish  do  you  catch  in  the  bay?"  one  of  the  boys  inquired, 
as  he  turned  toward  the  skipper. 

"Well,"  was  the  response,  "there's  blackfish, and  kingfish,  and  weak- 
fish,  and  porgies,  and  skates,  and 
flounders,  and  I  don't  know  how 
many  other  kinds.  Then  we  catch 
eels,  and  crabs,  and  sheep's-head,  and 
dog-fish,  and  moss -bunkers,  and 
there  are  acres  and  acres  of  the  bay 
planted  with  oysters;  and  then — 
just  look  there !" 

As  he  spoke  they  were  sailing 
close  to  a  boat  wherein  a  young 
man  was  holding  up  a  queer-look- 
ing fish  that  the  skipper  pronounced 
a  sea-robin.  It  had  a  complex  ar- 
rangement of  fins,  and  altogether 
seemed  almost  as  well  fitted  to  fly 
A  QUEER  FISH.  as  to  swim.  The  skipper  said  the 


PECULIARITIES  OF  THE   BLOW-FISH  AND  PORGY.  140 

sea-robin  was  good  for  nothing,  as  nobody  considered  liim  fit  to  eat.  He 
was  a  great  robber  of  the  bait  on  fish-hooks,  and  was  not  a  favorite  of 
the  fishermen  ;  for  this  reason  he  was  generally  knocked  on  the  head 
and  then  tossed  overboard. 

Then  he  described  another  odd  product  of  the  bay,  that  was  known  as 
the  blow-fish,  and  had  the  power  of  inflating  himself  with  air  when  taken 
out  of  the  water.  The  boatmen  had  a  trick  of  compelling  him  to  do  so 
by  rolling  him  under  their  feet.  When  thus  inflated  he  was  as  round  as 
a  full-blown  bladder,  but  if  thrown  on  the  water  while  in  this  condition 
he  speedily  reduced  himself  to  his  original  dimensions,  and  dived  below. 


THE    PORGY. 


"  A  very  abundant  fish  in  all  the  waters  around  New  York,"  the  Doc- 
tor remarked,  "  is  the  porgy,  or  porgie.  He  is  so  abundant  that  he  is 
very  cheap,  and  therefore  he  comes  in  play  as  the  food  of  thousands  of 
poor  people  who  cannot  afford  the  cost  of  cod  or  blue-fish.  In  some  lo- 
calities he  is  called  scup,  or  scuppaug,  and  he  is  known  to  the  scientific 
men  as  the  Stenotomus  argyrops.  The  flesh  is  sweet  and  of  excellent 
flavor,  and  would  be  highly  prized  by  the  epicures  if  it  was  held  at  a  high 
price;  but  as  it  is  cheap,  it  is  not  fashionable,  and  you  might  ask  in  vain 
for  porgies  at  the  first-class  hotels  and  restaurants,  and  be  compelled  to 
pay  a  high  price  for  fish  not  half  as  good  in  quality.  In  summer  it  is  the 
custom  in  New  York  for  fishing-parties  to  go  in  steamers  to  the  Cholera 
Banks,  as  they  are  called,  close  to  the  coast  of  New  Jersey.  There  seems 
to  be  an  unfailing  supply  of  porgies  at  these  banks,  and  the  many  thou- 


150 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


sands  that  are  caught  there  do  not  make  any  apparent  reduction  of  the 
grand  total.  The  porgy  has  a  small  mouth,  and  he  is  a  great  robber  of 
bait.  Only  the  smallest  hooks  can  catch  him,  and  sometimes  a  fisherman 
will  have  his  hook  stripped  a  dozen  times  before  he  succeeds  in  catching 
one  of  the  little  fellows." 

"If  you  run  a  little  way  up  some  of  the  creeks,"  said  the  skipper, 
"you  can  catch  a  few  trout  now  and  then,  by  way  of  a  change,  but  they 
don't  bite  out  here  in  the  bay.  It  isn't  the  season  for  trout  now,"  he  con- 
tinued, "  and  you  have  to  put  up  with  something  else.  If  we  have  good 
luck  with  the  blue-fish,  you'll  have  all  the  sport  you  want." 


MOUTH    OF    A    SOUTH    BAY    CliEEK. 


AMONG  THE   BLUE-FISH. 


151 


CHAPTER  XII. 

AMONG  THE   BLUE-FISH.— THROUGH   LONG   ISLAND   SOUND. 

THE  boat  sailed  onward  down  the  channel,  and  went  out  into  the  broad 
Atlantic.  As  she  crossed  the  bar  at  the  inlet  the  skipper  pointed  to 
a  box  beneath  the  seat  in  the  little  cabin,  and  told  the  Doctor  he  would 
find  plenty  of  lines  and  squids  in  it.  Harry  had  heard  of  a  fish  called  the 
squid,  and  he  naturally  expected  the  box  would  be  full  of  them.  But 
when  the  lines  were  brought  out,  he  found  that  the  squid  was  a  counterfeit 
affair  made  of  lead  or  pewter,  and  cast  on  the  shank  of  a  large  hook.  The 
Doctor  unrolled  one  of  the  lines,  and  allowed  it  to  trail  over  the  stern  of 
the  boat.  The  boys  followed  his  example,  and  in  a  few  minutes  three 
lines  were  in  the  water,  and  the  deceptive  squids  were  dancing  on  the 
waves  twenty  or  thirty  yards  astern  of  the  little  craft.  The  Doctor  ex- 
plained that  the  bine-fish  mistakes  the  bit  of  shining  pewter  for  the  real 
squid,  and  he  is  so  voracious  that  he  bites  at  it  without  stopping  to  exam- 
ine it  closely. 

".How  will  I  know  when  a  fish  bites  my  hook?"  George  inquired. 


SCENE    IN   GREAT   SOUTH   BAY. 


152  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

"  I  think  you  will  have  no  trouble  in  discovering  it,"  said  the  Doctor, 
with  a  smile.  "  Wait  and  see." 

"  The* bine-fish,"  he  continued,  "  is  a  member  of  the  mackerel  family. 
II is  scientific  name  is  Temnodon  saltator,  of  the  genus  Scomlridce,  and  he 


THE    BLUE-FISH. 


is  variously  known  along  the  Atlantic  coast  as  the  horse-mackerel,  skip- 
jack, sea-tailor,  and  greenfish.  He  is  the  most  voracious  fish  that  swims 
in  the  sea,  and  when  he  makes  his  appearance  he  carries  terror  to  other 
members  of  the  finny  tribe.  Blue-fish  travel  in  schools,  and  their  chief 
occupation  seems  to  be  the  destruction  of  everything  else  that  comes  in 
their  way.  When  they  have  gorged  themselves  full  of  food,  they  con- 
tinue to  eat,  and  I  have  often  brought  them  into  the  boat  with  their 
stomachs  distended  almost  to  the  bursting  point.  Sometimes  the  track 
of  a  school  is  marked  by  a  streak  of  blood  on  the  water,  and  if  you  look 
closely  you  will  see  fragments  of  fish  scattered  here  and  there  that  they 
are  unable  to  swallow.  They  will  kill  fishes  as  large  as  themselves,  and 
sometimes  you  will  find  a  dead  fish  with  a  piece  bitten  out  of  its  side  as 
clean  as  though  cut  with  a  knife. 

"  It  pursues  the  common  mackerel,  and  the  menhaden,  or  moss-bunk- 
er, and  frequently  drives  them  on  shore.  When  you  see  a  school  of  men- 
haden, you  will  often  find  the  blue-fish  near  them,  and  if  the  school  is  a 
large  one  the  havoc  will  be  very  great.  One  way  to  find  where  they  are 
is  to  watch  the  gulls  flying  over  the  water;  they  indicate  the  position  of 
the  menhaden,  and  these  again  indicate  the  position  of  the  blue-fish. 

"If  you  happen  to  take  one,  you  must  look  out  how  you  draw  him 
into  the  boat.  Keep  the  line  taut,  or  he  will  shake  himself  free.  Some- 
times he  jumps  out  of  the  water  six  or  eight  feet  in  the  direction  of  the 
boat,  and  by  so  doing  gains  slack  enough  to  shake  the  hook  from  his 
mouth ;  and  when  you  get  him  in  the  boat  you  must  look  out  for  his 


THE    FIRST   BITE. 


153 


teeth,  as  they  are  verj7  sharp,  and  can  inflict  a  severe  wound.  The  squids 
are  bitten  and  scarred  by  his  teeth,  and  the  lines  must  be  protected  by 
wire  for  the  last  foot  or  two  of  their  length,  to  prevent  their  being  bitten 
off  by  the  fish  when  he  seizes  the  bait.  His  jaws  are  like  iron,  and  he 
can — 

Further  remarks  were  suddenly  postponed  for  the  present.     Almost 


AMONG    THE    BLUE-FISH. 


simultaneously  the  three  lines  were  straightened  out,  and  the  holders 
thereof  felt  a  tingle  in  their  fingers  that  extended  up  to  their  shoulders, 
and  thence  down  to  their  toes.  They  had  struck  a  school  of  blue-fish,  and 
for  a  few  minutes  the  sport  was  of  the  most  exciting  character.  The  boys 
obeyed  the  injunction  of  the  Doctor,  and  kept  their  lines  as  taut  as  possi- 
ble. George  brought  his  fish  into  the  boat  safely,  but  the  one  on  Harry's 


154  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

line  managed  to  free  himself,  much  to  the  young  gentleman's  disappoint- 
ment. The  boatman  swung  the  tiller  around  a  little,  so  as  to  slacken 
speed,  and  make  the  work  of  hauling  in  less  difficult;  hut  even  with  this 
aid  the  boys  had  all  they  wished  to  do.  The  captured  fish  were  dropped 
into  the  bottom  of  the  boat,  and  in  three  or  four  minutes  all  was  quiet 
again. 

"  We'll  go  back  and  give  them  another  try,"  said  the  skipper,  as  he 
brought  the  boat  around  to  sail  once  more  through  the  school. 

The  trial  proved  successful,  and  this  time  Harry  was  the  first  to  get 
his  fish  on  board.  George  brought  in  another ;  but  the  Doctor,  in  spite 
of  his  experience  among  blue-fish,  did  not  secure  anything.  Another  turn 
among  the  members  of  the  marine  school  resulted  in  a  single  fish  and  a 
couple  of  bites ;  but  after  that,  when  the  boat  went  about  again,  the  fish 
refused  to  take  the  hook.  Then  they  headed  off  the  land  a  little,  and 
in  a  short  time  another  school  was  found,  which  afforded  several  prizes. 
The  boys  found  their  fingers  somewhat  cut  by  the  lines,  and  the  Doctor 
told  them  it  was  well  to  protect  their  hands  with  gloves  while  out  blue- 
fishing,  especially  in  the  later  months  of  the  year,  when  the  fish  frequently 
weighed  ten  or  twelve  pounds  each.  The  prizes  for  that  day  were  from 
five  to  seven  pounds  in  weight,  the  largest  hardly  exceeding  the  latter 
figure. 

It  was  noon,  and  they  were  hungry ;  and  so  an  attack  was  made  on 
lunch-basket  and  clam-bucket.  The  boys  pronounced  the  clams  the  finest 
they  had  ever  tasted,  and  thought  the  clam  ought  to  feel  happy  at  being 
so  highly  prized.  "  His  praises  are  in  every  mouth,"  said  Harry,  "  or 
certainly  in  every  mouth  where  he  has  been." 

George  asked  if  the  Latin  proverb  deprofimdis  clamam  had  any 
reference  to  the  bivalve  they  were  discussing. 

The  Doctor  did  not  think  so,  as  the  words  deprofundis  meant  "out 
of  the  deep,"  and  the  South  Bay  was  so  shallow  that  it  was  not  entitled 
to  the  distinction  indicated  in  the  phrase. 

"  Poetry  has  been  written  about  the  clam,"  said  the  Doctor ;  "  some 
of  it  in  a  serious  vein,  but  much  oftener  it  is  humorous." 

"I  know  a  nursery  rhyme  about  the  clam,"  said  George,  "and  it  may 
be  new  to  yon.  Here  it  is: 

"  'There  was  a  young  mnn  of  Sinm, 
Who  never  had  looked  at  a  clum ; 

So  he  swallowed  the  shell, 

But  it  made  him  unwell ; 
And  lie  said,  'Tis  a  great  big  fool  that  I  am.'  " 


IN  FKONT   OF  FIRE   ISLAND   BEACH.  155 

"Do  they  have  clams  in  Siam  ?"  Harry  inquired. 

The  Doctor  said  he  could  not  tell  positively,  but  he  thought  they  did 
not.  He  had  been  in  Siam,  and  never  saw  a  clam  there  or  heard  of  one. 
Consequently,  the  rhyme  that  George  had  just  given  them  might  have  a 
foundation  in  fact,  though  it  did  not  reflect  creditably  on  the  intelligence 
of  the  youthful  Siamese.  His  conclusion,  after  the  result  of  his  experi- 
ment had  developed  itself,  was  the  most  sensible  part  of  the  whole  pro- 
ceeding. 

They  were  sailing  up  and  down  the  front  of  Fire  Island  Beach,  where 
the  surf  was  breaking  along  the  sands,  and  throwing  up  long  crests  of 
white  foam  that  seamed  to  be  chasing  each  other  from  the  depths  of  the 
Atlantic.  Here  and  there  were  scattered  the  summer  visitors;  some  sit- 
ting or  walking  in  the  sand  ;  others  listening  to  the  music  of  the  wild 
waves  of  the  ocean;  and  others,  again,  indulging  in  the  luxury  of  a  bath 
in  the  cooling  waters.  The  sky  was  unclouded ;  the  breeze  was  of  a  balmy 
coolness,  and  it  swept  steadily  in  from  the  sea,  and  kept  the  sail  of  the 
little  boat  filled  to  its  proper  tension.  The  waters  were  dotted  with  the 
sails  of  dozens  of  boats  like  their  own* whose  occupants  were  on  pleasure 
bent ;  and  here  and  there  were  larger  craft,  holding  their  course  farther 
at  sea,  and  evidently  dreading  a  near  acquaintance  with  the  shore.  Six 
or  eight  miles  out  from  the  land  was  a  great  ocean-steamer,  with  a  cloud 
of  smoke  pouring  from  her  funnels,  and  trailing  behind  her  in  a  long 
black  cloud  betwixt  sea  and  sky.  Along  the  southern  horizon  stretched 
the  coast  of  New  Jersey,  just  visible  through  the  delicate  haze ;  westward 
was  the  sandy  shore  of  Long  Island ;  while  away  to  the  east  lay  the  lim- 
itless ocean,  its  waves  dancing  in  the  sunlight,  and  growing  more  and 
more  faint  in  their  outlines,  till  lost  in  the  curving  rim  that  marked  the 
connection  between  the  waters  and  the  blue  dome  above. 

A  dark  object  on  the  beach,  where  some  children  were  playing,  caught 
the  attention  of  one  of  the  boys.  He  pointed  toward  it,  and  asked  the 
Doctor  what  it  was. 

"  A  wreck,"  was  the  answer,  "  and  if  yon  look  farther  along  the  beach 
you  will  see  another.  This  part  of  the  coast  is  dangerous,  and  many  a 
noble  ship  has  found  her  grave  in  these  sands;  and  not  only  the  ship,  but 
often  her  crew  and  whatever  passengers  she  may  have  on  board  are  swal- 
lowed by  the  waves,  and  not  a  soul  escapes.  Hardly  a  year  passes 'with- 
out a  wreck-  on  this  sandy  beach,  and  there  are  several  cases  recorded  in 
the  local  history  of  the  coast  where  not  a  single  person  escaped  to  tell  the 
story.  You  remember  that  tall  flag-staff  in  front  of  the  Olympic  Club- 
house?" 


156 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


f"" 


i>£ 


A    SAD    MKMENT1 


"Certainly  we  do!"  responded 
both  the  boys,  almost  iu  the  same 
breath. 

"The  lower  half  of  that  flag- 
staff," said  the  Doctor,  "  was  once  the 
mast  of  a  ship  that  was  lost  here,  and 
I  believe  the  upper  part  of  it  was 
one  of  her  spars.  In  nearly  every 
house  along  the  coast  you  will  find 
some  melancholy  memento  of  a  wreck 
— pieces  of  furniture  or  decorations, 
and  various  articles,  useful  or  orna- 
mental. At  the  Olympic  Club  there 
is  still  another  piece  of  timber  from 
a  wrecked  ship,  and  it  has  a  special 
interest  for  all  lovers  of  American  literature." 
"What  is  that?" 

•'  It  is  the  little  post  that  stands  in  the  middle  of  the  lawn,  and  sup- 
ports a  miniature  house  where  a  large  family  of  sparrows  make  their 
home.  For  years  it  was  a  flag-staff  like  the  larger  one,  but,  becoming  de- 
cayed, it  was  cut  down  and  applied  to  its  present  use.  It  was  originally 
the  main  boom  of  the  bark  Elizabeth,  that  was  wrecked  on  Fire  Island 
beach  in  1850.  Among  her  passengers  was  the  Countess  Ossoli,  better 
known  by  her  maiden  name  of  Margaret  Fuller.  She  was  one  of  the 
foremost  American  writers  in  the  first  half  of  this  century,  and  though 
more  than  thirty  years  have  passed  since  her  death,  her  works'  are  widely 
read  at  the  present  time.  She,  with  her  husband  and  infant  son,  were 
passengers  on  the  Elizabeth,  and  all  met  their  deaths  on  the  sandy  shore 
on  which  you  are  now  looking.  Some  of  the  members  of  the  Olympic 


STRANGE  STORY  OF  A  WRECK. 


157 


Club  bought  the  piece  of  timber  I  have  indicated  at  the  sale  of  the  re- 
mains of  the  vessel,  and  doubtless  other  fragments  might  be  found  in  the 
neighborhood  if  a  careful  search  were  made. 

"Many  are  the  stories  told  of  the  daring  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
coast  in  rescuing  the  victims  of  the  wrecks,  and  of  their  kindness  in  aid- 
ing the  sufferers.  The  Government  has  established  life-saving  stations  at 
the  most  dangerous  points  along  the  coast,  and  many  lives  are  saved  every 
year  by  the  men  attached  to  this  humane  service.  There  is  one  of  them," 
he  continued,  as  he  pointed  to  a  small  building  a  little  way  back  from  the 
line  of  surf,  and  among  the  sandy  hummocks.  "  It  contains  a  life-boat, 
and  all  the  needed  appliances  for  rescuing  persons  from  wrecked  ships, 


A    LIFE-SAVIJsG    STATION. 


and  during  the  winter  season  there  are  from  six  to  ten  men  constantly 
on  duty  there  to  watch  for  ships  that  come  ashore  in  storms  or  from 
other  causes. 

"  One  of  the  most  remarkable  stories  I  ever  heard  of  the  saving  of 
life  on  a  wrecked  vessel  has  a  Newfoundland  dog  as  its  hero." 

"  Why,  how  curious  !" 

"A  ship  was  wrecked  off  a  rocky  point  on  the  coast  of  Massachusetts 
not  far  from  Cohasset.  There  was  no  life-boat  station  near,  and  no  or- 
dinary boat  could  live  in  the  storm.  A  crowd  gathered  on  the  beach  in 
sight  of  the  wreck,  but  they  could  do  nothing,  and  it  seemed  as  if  all  on 
board  the  ship  would  be  drowned. 

"A  man  named  Lincoln  lived  near  there,  who  possessed  a  Newfound- 


158 


THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


land  dog  of  unusual  intelligence.  The  dog  seemed  to  understand  that 
the  ship  was  in  danger,  and  some  one  suggested  that  he  could  be  induced 
to  swim  out  and  bring  a  line  from  the  ship  to  the  shore.  It  took  some 
time  to  get  him  to  comprehend  what  was  wanted,  but  finally  he  grasped 
the  idea,  and  started  through  the  surf.  It  was  a  hard  struggle  with  the 
waves,  and  several  times  it  seemed  as  though  he  would  be  unable  to  make 
his  way  against  them.  He  persevered,  and  succeeded  in  reaching  the  side 
of  the  ship,  where  a  bit  of  wood,  to  which  a  light  cord  had  been  attached, 
was  thrown  to  him. 

"Seizing  the  wood  in  his  mouth  he  swum -back  to  the  shore,  and  had 
just  strength  left  to  crawl  up  the  sands  and  deliver  the  stick  to  his  anx- 
iously waiting  master.  Wasn't  he  greeted  with  a  round  of  cheers,  and 
didn't  everybody  do  all  he  could  to  restore  the  exhausted  animal  ?  By 
means  of  the  cord  a  stout  line  was  brought  to  shore,  and  then  a  cable,  and 
over  the  cable  every  man,  woman,  and  child  on  that  ship  was  rescued. 


A    DOG    TO    THE    RESCUE. 


And  for  years  afterward,  and  as  long  as  he  lived,  the  dog  was  the  pride 
of  the  inhabitants  of  all  the  region  around  there,  and  hundreds  of  people 
came  to  see  him.  lie  seemed  to  understand  what  it  was  all  about ;  for  al- 


CATCHING  A  HAMMER-FISH. 


159 


ways  when  a  storm  came  up  he  would  go  out  on  the  beach  and  watch  the 
ships  as  they  sailed  by.  Happily  he  never  had  occasion  to  show  his  in- 
telligence in  the  same  way,  as  no  other  wreck  was  thrown  there  during 
his  lifetime." 

"  If  you  want  to  get  back  in  good  season,"  said  the  skipper,  "  we  had 
better  be  on  the  home-stretch  before  long.     The  wind  is  likely  to  drop 
soon,  and  besides,  we  shall  have  the 
tide  against  us  after  four  o'clock." 

The  Doctor  gave  the  word,  and 
the  cat -boat  was  speedily  on  the 
way  to  the  bar,  which  she  passed 
with  the  last  of  the  flood-tide.  By 
five  o'clock  they  were  at  the  little 
dock  where  the  boats  of  the  Olym- 
pic Club  make  their  landings,  well 
pleased  with  the  result  of  the  day's 
trip. 

"What  kinds  of  fish  have  you 
taken  to-day  ?"  the  commodore  ask- 
ed, as  soon  as  the  party  was  seated 
under  the  trees  in  front  of  the  din- 
ing-room of  the  club. 

"Oh,  nothing  but  blue -fish," 
one  of  the  boys  replied.  "  We  saw 
some  men  take  a  shark,  and  we 
passed  by  boats  that  had  other 
kinds  of  fish  on  board.  But  there 
wasn't  anything  on  our  hooks  to- 
day but  blue-fish." 

"  The  Doctor  must  have  changed 
his  habits,"  the  commodore  re- 
marked, "  if  he  didn't  have  you 
catch  at  least  one  hammer -fish. 
He  used  to  be  one  of  the  cham- 
pions of  that  kind  of  sport." 

The  Doctor  smiled,  and  then  explained  to  the  boys  that  a  custom  pre- 
vailed once  on  a  time  among  the  club-men  of  allowing  every  verdant  vis- 
itor to  catch  a  hammer-fish  on  his  first  excursion  in  a  cat-boat. 

"The  attention  of  the  victim,"  said  he,  "is  first  attracted  to  some  ob- 
ject that  causes  him  to  look  away  from  the  direction  in  which  his  line  is 


NOT    A    HAMMKK-FISH. 


160  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

trailing  over  the  stern  of  the  boat.  While  he  is  thus  engaged  his  line  is 
drawn  in  surreptitiously,  and  some  heavy  object,  generally  a  hammer,  is 
attached  to  it.  Line  and  hammer  are  then  thrown  overboard,  and  when 
the  line  straightens  out  the  hammer  gives  a  jerk  that  makes  the  novice 
believe  he  has  hooked  nothing  less  than  a  ten-pound  blue-fish. 

"His  eyes  fairly  dance  with  excitement.  He  hauls  away  with  all  his 
might,  the  hammer  darting  here  and  there  in  the  water,  and  making  a  re- 
markable imitation  of  the  motions  of  a  fish.  The  rest  of  the  party  add  to 
the  perturbation  of  the  fisherman  by  hauling  in  their  own  lines,  giving 
him  a  dozen  contradictory  admonitions,  and  shouting  as  though  their 
heads  had  suddenly  been  turned.  Xearer  and  nearer  comes  the  prize,  and 
larger  grow  the  eyes  of  the  victim,  and  at  last  he  brings  his  fish  over  the 
stern  of  the  boat,  to  find  it  is  no  fish  at  all,  but  only  a  rusty  hammer. 

"  That  is  the  hammer-fish  of  .Great  South  Bay,  and  many  a  man  has 
caught  not  only  one  but  half  a  dozen.  Some  of  the  practical  jokers  once 
rigged  up  a  fish  of  tin,  with  a  swivel  through  his  nose,  and  a  snap-hook 
on  the  swivel,  so  that  the  counterfeit  could  be  placed  on  the  line  of  a  ver- 
dant man  without  the  trouble  of  hauling  it  in." 

The  boys  were  pretty  well  fatigued  with  their  day  on  the  water,  and 
before  nine  in  the  evening  they  were  in  bed  and  sound  asleep.  The  next 
day  the  Lotos  left  the  hospitality  of  the  Olympic  Club  behind  her,  and 
sailed  out  of  the  bay  and  away  to  the  eastward. 

The  breeze  was  excellent,  and  they  went  along  at  a  fine  rate.  Every 
sail  of  the  Lotos  that  could  possibly  draw  was  set  to  catch  it,  and  the  way 
she  dashed  through  the  water  roused  the  enthusiasm  of  the  boys,  who 
thought  it  about  the  best  fun  they  had  ever  known.  Toward  sunset  the 
wind  fell,  and  the  yacht  passed  the  night  at  sea,  where  the  boys  were 
lulled  to  sleep  by  the  steady  rocking  of  the  little  craft  on  the  waves  and 
the  dashing  of  the  waters  on  her  sides.  In  the  morning  they  rounded 
Montauk  Point,  the  eastern  extremity  of  Long  Island,  and  passed  close 
to  a  small  steamer,  which  the  skipper  briefly  described  as  a  bunker-boat. 

"  They're  fishing  for  moss-bunkers,"  he  explained.  "  See  those  small 
boats  along-side,  and  the  net  that  they're  scooping  the  fish  out  of  by  the 
bushel.  When  they  see  a  school  of  bunkers  they  send  out  the  small 
boats  and  surround  it  with  the  net;  then  they  haul  the  net  in,  and  they 
have  the  bunkers  safe  and  sure  if  they  have  done  the  work  right.  When 
they've  got  ?em  they  haul  the  net  along-side  the  steamer,  and  dip  the  fish 
out  with  that  great  bucket  you  see  travelling  back  and  forth.  They  are 
dumped  into  the  hold  of  the  steamer,  and  when  she's  full  she  goes  to 
port,  where  the  oil  is  to  be  tried  out." 


THROUGH  LONG  ISLAND  SOUND. 


161 


A    BUXKEK-BOAT    NEAR    MOSTACK    POINT. 


"  How  many  do  tliey  take  at  a  time  ?"  one  of  the  boys  asked. 

"  That  depends  a  good  deal  on  luck,"  responded  the  skipper.  "  Some- 
times the  school  gets  away  by  sinking  down  before  the  bottom  of  the  net 
is  closed.  In  such  a  case  they  don't  get  a  single  fish,  or  but  very  few ; 
but  the  men  in  the  business  are  careful  not  to  have  such  an  accident  hap- 
pen often.  Fifty  thousand  is  a  good  haul — a  very  good  one,  and  a  hun- 
dred thousand  is  first-rate.  I've  known  a  boat  to  take  three  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  in  a  single  haul ;  but  it  was  unusual  luck,  and  can't  be 
counted  on  to  last.  There's  about  seventy  steamers  in  the  business,  and 
the  town  of  Greenport,  where  we're  going,  has  half  a  million  dollars  in- 
vested in  steamers,  boats,  nets,  and  other  things  necessary  for  bunker-fish- 
ing. I'm  told  that  more'n  fifty  million  moss-bunkers  are  caught  every 
year,  but  I  can't  say  for  certain,  as  I  never  counted  'em." 

The  yacht  rounded  the  point,  and  stood  away  to  the  west  once  more. 
She  was  bound  for  Greenport,  where  she  remained  a  day,  and  then  the 
party  proceeded  to  Sag  Harbor.  A  week  was  passed  in  a  pleasant  cruise 
around  the  eastern  extremity  of  Long  Island  and  the  waters  as  far  east 
as  Newport,  and  then  tlie  Lotos  was  headed  for  New  York.  On  the  re- 

11 


162 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


turn  voyage  she  passed  through  Long  Island  Sound,  stopping  at  New 
London  for  a  few  hours,  and  thence  going  direct  to  the  anchorage  where 
the  boys  first  saw  her. 

The  boys  found  they  had  passed  a  most  agreeable  fortnight,  and  they 
agreed,  without  wasting  a  moment  in  discussion,  that  the  time  would  be 
very  long  before  they  forgot  tlieir  cruise  on  the  Lotos.  Their  last  even- 
ing on  Long  Island  Sound  was  rendered  memorable  by  a  beautiful  sunset, 
which  George  endeavored  to  retain  by  means  of  a  sketch.  Harry  remark- 
ed that  a  sunset  without  color  could  hardly  be  considered  perfect,  and  was 
not  altogether  unlike  "  Hamlet "  without  Hamlet ;  but  he  added  that  a 
sketch  in  plain  black  and  white  was  far  better  .than  no  sketch  at  all,  and 
therefore  he  quite  approved  the  effort  of  George  in  that  direction. 


AMONG   THE   ADIRONDACKS.  163 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

AMONG  THE   ADIRONDACKS.—  A  DAY'S  TROUT-FISHING. 


days  after  their  return  from  the  cruise  on  the  yacht  the  Doc- 
tor  announced  to  the  boys  that  he  had  another  pleasure  expedition 
arranged  for  them. 

"  I'm  going  to  take  you  to  the  Adirondacks,"  said  he,  "  and  show  you 
some  of  the  attractions  of  that  famous  mountain  region.  The  Adiron- 
dacks have  been  greatly  overpraised,  but  there  are  many  pleasant  features 
about  them  that  I  think  you  will  enjoy  ;  so  get  your  baggage  ready,  and 
we  will  start  to-morrow." 

He  further  informed  them  that  he  would  attend  to  all  the  necessaries 
in  the  shape  of  guns,  ammunition,  fishing-tackle,  and  the  like  ;  and  the 
only  thing  they  need  take  any  trouble  about  was  their  personal  outfits. 
"  Take  pretty  much  the  same  quantity  and  quality  of  clothing  that  you 
had  on  the  yacht  cruise,  and  you  will  not  be  far  out  of  the  way  ;  and  if 
yon  find  that  you  have  omitted  anything,  we  can  supply  the  want  without 
much  trouble  when  we  reach  the  mountains." 

The  party  went  by  rail  to  Saratoga,  where  they  remained  a  day,  and 
then  proceeded  by  the  well-known  routes  of  travel  to  the  heart  of  the 
Adirondacks.  The  Doctor  was  familiar  with  the  region,  and  it  was  his 
desire  to  get  as  far  as  possible  from  the  regular  track  of  the  tourists,  who 
know  little  about  hunting  and  fishing,  and  whose  chief  accomplishment 
is  in  spoiling  the  sport  for  every  one  else.  He  knew  a  quiet  little  nook 
where  the  tourist  had  not  penetrated,  and  where  the  manners  of  the  peo- 
ple were  not  corrupted  by  the  influx  of  .men  and  women  from  the  city. 
Thither  he  directed  his  route,  and  he  kept  it  as  secret  as  possible,  and  did 
not  even  tell  the  boys  where  he  was  going,  for  fear  they  might  betray 
him  in  an  unguarded  moment.  We  will  respect  his  privacy,  and,  if  any 
reader  of  our  narrative  thinks  he  recognizes  the  place  by  the  description 
given  herein,  it  is  hoped  that  he  will  not  say  so  above  a  whisper. 

As  the  wagon  rattled  to  the  front  of  the  log-house  where  the  Doctor 
intended  to  stop,  the  driver  shouted  a  sonorous,  "Here  we  are!"  The 


16-t 


THE    YOUNG   XIMRODS. 


call  brought  to  the  door  a  stout,  matronly  body  with  a  proportionally  de- 
veloped head,  which  was  adorned  with  a  cap  and  a  pair  of  steel-bowed 
spectacles.  The  personage  was  uo  other  than  Mrs.  Fisher — we'll  call  her 
so,  but  that  was  not  her  name — and  the  most  polite  man  in  the  world' 
could  hardly  venture  to  call  her  young. 

"How  de  do,  Doctor?"  she  exclaimed,  in  a  cheery  voice,  as  she  ex- 
tended her  hand  toward  the  wagon,  "  we've  been  looking  for  you  this 
summer,  and  felt  sure  you'd  come." 

The  Doctor  was  out  of  the  wagon  almost  at  the  instant  it  stopped,  and 
the  boys  speedily  followed  him.  After  a  hearty  hand-shake  with  Mrs. 

Fisher,  he  introduced  the  boys,  and 
then  the  party  entered  the  house, 
while  the  driver  unloaded  the  bag- 
gage from  his  conveyance.  He  was 
assisted  in  this  work"  by  Mrs.  Fish- 
er's son  James.  She  generally  al- 
luded to  him  as  "my  boy,"  but  as 
he  was  on  the  shady  side  of  forty, 
the  appellation  did  not  n't  him  very 
closely.  When  he  was  not  called 
"my  boy,"  he  was  addressed  as 
"  Jim,"  and  he  said  that  when  any- 
body called  him  "  James,"  it  seem- 
ed as  though  some  one  else  than 
himself  was  alluded  to.  Jim  was 
the  bachelor  son  of  his  widowed 
mother,  and  the  two  were  much  at- 
tached to  each  other.  Mrs.  Fisher 
kept  house,  while  Jim  managed  their  little  farm  that  had  been  cleared 
up  from  the  forest,  and  he  served  as  guide  and  assistant  to  the  few  visit- 
ors that  found  their  way  into  that  part  of  the  wilderness  in  summer.  The 
Doctor  had  been  there  several  times,  and  was  regarded  by  mother  and 
son  as  a  warm  personal  friend  rather  than  as  a  customer  from  the  city. 

It  was  late  in  the  afternoon  when  the  party  arrived  at  Fishers',  and 
the  good  old  lady  told  them  she  would  have  supper  ready  in  about  half 
an  hour.  The  intervening  time  was  spent  in  unpacking  the  baggage  and 
getting  out  some  of  the  odds  and  ends  needed  for  a  toilet  in  the  back- 
woods, and  they  were  still  occupied  at  it  when  supper  was  announced. 
The  meal  consisted  of  game  from  the  forest  and  trout  from  the  brook,  to- 
gether with  some  delicious  fresh  butter,  and  bread  made  from  the  product 


"HOW    DE    DO,   DOCTOR?' 


AN    EXPERIENCE   WITH   PUNKIES. 


165 


I'UNKIES    ABOUT. 


of  the  soil  of  that  region.     After  supper  the  boys  went  to  sit  on  a  bench 

in  front  of  the  house,  but  they  had  not  been  there  long  before  a  painful 

sensation    troubled    their    faces,    as 

though  a  hot  flame  was  passing  over  .  ,  '  •••••*' 

them.      Harry    asked    the    Doctor 

what  it  was. 

"  Oil,  nothing,"    was  the   reply ; 

"  nothing  but  punkies." 

"I  guess  I'll  bring  you  a  smudge 

to   keep   'em    off,"    said    Jim ;    and 

away  he  went  to  return   in   a  few 

moments  with   a   shovel   on  which 

were  some  live  coals.     The  shovel 

was  placed  on  the  ground  close  to 

the  boys'  feet,  and  then  some  dried 

leaves  and  bits  of  decayed  wood  were 

laid  on  the  coals.     A  dense  smoke 

rose  from  the  shovel,  and  as  Jim  had  predicted,  it  soon  put  the  punkies 

to  flight.     Naturally,  the  next  question,  of  the  boys  was  concerning  the 

character  of  the  cause  of  their  sufferings. 

"The  punky,"  the  Doctor  explained,  "is  a  small  gnat,  so  small  in- 
deed that  you  can  hardly  see  him  with  the  naked  eye.     He  can  make 
himself  very  troublesome,  and  a  good  deal  of 
the  pleasure  of  the  Adirondacks  is  destroyed 
by  his  presence." 

The  smoke  nearly  stifled  the  hoys,  and 
they  were  unable  to  say  which  gave  the 
greatest  discomfort,  the  smudge  or  the  pun- 
kies. The  Doctor  brought  out  some  veils 
he  had  brought  with  him  ;  the  boys  wrapped 
their  heads  in  these  veils,  and  thus  rendered 
their  faces  secure  against  the  attacks  of  their 
tormentors. 

One  of  the  topics  of  conversation  during 
the  evening  was  the  growing  popularity  of 
the  Adirondacks,  and  the  rapidity  with  which 
the  country  was  becoming  settled.  Jim 

thought  it  would  not  be  long  before  there  would  be  at  least  two  hunters 

for  every  deer  in  the  forest,  and  a  fisherman  for  every  trout  in  the 

streams.      The  game  was  fast  disappearing,  and  unless  the   Legislature 


A    SMUDGE. 


166 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


passed  laws  for  its  protection,  and  attended  to  their  enforcement,  it  would 
soon  be  impossible  to  find  a  single  deer  from  one  end  of  the  mountain 
region  to  the  other. 


THE    TRATELLERS     HOME. 

"  It's  getting  too  thick  of  people,"  said  he,  "  and  we  shall  be  crowded 
out  of  here  before  ten  years  have  come  again.     There's  half  a  dozen  set- 
tlers within  three  miles  of  here,  and  down  on  Swan  River  a  fellow  has 
actually  opened  a  hotel.     He  calls  it  'The  Travellers'  Home,'  and  sells 
•  beer  over  a  counter  just 

like  a  place  in  the  city. 
The  wilderness  won't 
be  the  wilderness  much 
longer. 

"  Last  year,  a  fellow 
who  thought  he  could 
make  money  by  pre- 
empting some  land  went 
to  work  to  put  up  a 
claim  cabin.  He  threw 
a  few  logs  together  like 
the  foundation  of  a 
house,  and  then  looked 

A    CLAIM    CABIN. 

around  for  a  land-office 

where  he  could  register  his  claim.     He  was  rather  astonished  when  he 
found  there  was  no  land-office  here,  since  the  government  title  was  extiri- 


WATER-WORKS  OF  FISHER'S   CITY.  167 

guished  long  ago.     He'd  been  in  the  business  out  AVest,  and  didn't  stop 
to  consider  the  difference  between  New  York  and  Dakota." 

Bedtime  came,  and  soon  after  sleep.  The  boys  were  out  early  in  the 
morning  to  breathe  the  fresh  air  of  the  mountains,  and  see  the  sun  rise 
above  the  horizon.  The  great  luminary  was  obliged  to  climb  a  mountain 
that  formed  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  little  valley  where  the  Fisher 
cabin  stood,  and  consequently  the  day  was  well  advanced  before  the  sun 
was  visible.  Jirn  told  them  they  were  not  so  badly  off  as  some  folks  he 
knew  over  in  the  next  valley,  who  didn't  get  the  sun  till  eleven  in  the 
forenoon,  and  he  had  heard  of  a  place  out  West  where  the  sun  didn't  rise 
at  all  till  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day.  "  Come  along," 
said  he,  "  if  you  want  to  see  the  water-works  of  Fisher's  City." 

He  led  the  way  to  the  water-works,  which  consisted  of  a  barrel  mount- 
ed on  a  sled  with  broad  runners.  One  of  the  first  duties  of  the  day  was 
to  supply  the  house  with  water,  and 
accordingly  Jim  harnessed  a  demure- 
looking  steed  and  attached  him  to  the 
very  primitive,  vehicle.  A  journey  to 
a  neighboring  spring  occupied  several 
minutes,  and  then  Jim  proceeded  to 
split  a  log  that  had  every  appearance 
of  being  a  tough  case. 

Harry  thought  it  was  about  the 
worst  specimen  he  had  ever  seen  ;  it  was  full  of  knots  from  one  end  to 
the  other,  and,  as  it  was  nearly  three  feet  in  diameter,  it  was  no  easy 
thing  to  attack.  George  thought  nothing  short  of  gunpowder  could 
divide  it,  but  he  was  undeceived  when  Jim  made  a  little  crevice  with 
his  axe,  and  then  inserted  an  iron  wedge.  A  few  vigorous  blows  with 
a  heavy  beetle  sunk  the  wedge  in  the  log,  and  started  a  line  of  cleavage ; 
this  was  followed  with  another  wedge,  and  in  a  little  wrhile  the  log  was 
divided  and  ready  for  a  subdivision.  Jim  declared  he  had  split  logs 
that  were  twice  as  bad  as  the  one  before  him,  and  said  he  should  be 
thankful  if  he  never  had  anything  worse  to  do  than  what  he  had  just 
accomplished. 

Breakfast  was  announced  in  due  time,  and  soon  after  it  was  finished 
the  party  started  for  its  first  tramp  in  the  woods. 

Trout-fishing  was  the  sport  of  the  day,  and  there  was  a  general  over- 
hauling of  rods,  and  lines,  and  all  the  other  paraphernalia  of  that  occupa- 
tion. The  boys  had  never  handled  a  trout  rod,  and  did  not  understand 
its  manipulation,  but  the  explanations  of  Jim  and  the  Doctor  gave  them 


THE    WATER-WOK KS. 


168 


THE   YOUNG  NIMEODS. 


all  the  theories  they  wanted.     Theory  was  to  be  followed  by  practice, 
and  for  this  they  sought  the  water  where  trout  were  said  to  abound. 

The  Doctor  brought  out  a  jointed  rod,  with  all  the  patents  in  the  way 
of  click-reels,  leaders,  tips,  and  the  like ;  the  rods  that  the  boys  carried 
were  less  elaborate  in  style,  but  quite  good  enough  for  beginners.  Jim 

said  they  would  have  no  trouble  in 
taking  all  they  wanted,  as  the  lake 
he  would  lead  them  to  was  not 
visited  by  the  regular  tourists,  and 
the  trout  had  not  learned  all  the 
tricks  of  keeping  their  jaws  safe 
from  hooks.  "Over  where  the 
tourists  come,"  said  he,  "there  are 
trout  in  the  streams  that  have  been 
there  for  years,  and  know  every 
kind  of  fly  that  can  be  brought 
out.  You  can't  fool  'em  for  a 
cent;  you  may  drop  the  best  imi- 
tation-fly in  front  of  their  noses, 
and  they  just  turn  'em  up  and 
swim  off  as  dignified  as  a  horse 
going  to  the  watering -trough. 
They've  been  tickled  with  the 
points  of  hooks  till  they  know 
just  what  they  are,  and  it  is  real 
fun  for  'em  to  watch  the  antics  of 
the  fellows  who  call  themselves 
sportsmen." 

They  had  a  walk  of  a  couple 
of  miles  along  what  Jim  persisted 
in  calling  a  good  road.  The  boys 
could  not  discover  any  special 
goodness  about  it,  as  it  consisted 
of  rocks  piled  together  with  great 
irregularity,  and  an  occasional  in- 
termingling of  stumps  and  fallen 
trees.  They  met  a  horseman  pick- 
ing his  way  along  with  consider- 
able difficulty,  and  evidently  not  in 
THE  DOCTOR  GETTING  READY.  the  best  of  temper.  He  had  been 


A  KOAD   IN   THE    ADIRONDACKS. 


109 


THE    GOOD    KOAD. 


the  victim  of  a  mishap  half  an  hour 

before,  in  attempting  to  get  around 

a  log  which  lay  across  the  road.     As 

luck  would  have  it,  the  log  had  chosen 

a  boggy  place  to  fall  in,  and  when 

the  stranger  left  the   road   to   pass 

around  the  obstruction,  his  horse  be- 
came mired,  and  the  rider  was  neatly 

plastered  over  with  mud  in  conse- 
quence.     Jim   said    strangers    were 

often  veneered  in  that  way,  and  he 

cautioned  the  boys  against  straying 

from  the  road  where  swamps  were 

to  be  passed,  and  told  them  it  was 

a  good  rule  always  to  look  at  the  ground  before  you  put  your  foot  on  it. 
At  one  point  they  came  to  a  branch  road  that  led  to  a  clearing  seven 

miles  farther  in  the  forest.     The  direction  and  distance  were  indicated 

on  a  pine  tree  that  had  been  stripped  of  its  bark  on  one  side  till  a  suita- 
ble spot  was  secured  for  a  sign.  The  lettering  was 
done  with  red  chalk,  and  the  spelling  and  the  forma- 
tion of  letters  and  figures  did  not  indicate  a  great  fa- 
miliarity with  Webster's  Dictionary.  But  however 
rude  the  chirography,  the  information  was  correct,  and, 
as  Jim  remarked,  that  was  the  most  important  part  of 
it.  "  Speak  well  of  the  bridge  that  carries  you  safely 
over,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  and  respect  the  mile-stone  that 
puts  you  in  the  right  way." 

The  two  miles  stretched  out  rather  longer  than  the 
boys  had  expected.  Jim  explained  that  it  was  the 
roughness  made  them  seem  longer,  and  he  also  admit- 
ted  that  the  surveyors  who  measured  the  miles  did  not 
have  their  instruments  along  at  the  time,  and  simply 
made  a  guess  of  it.  "  To  be  sure  that  there  would  be 
good  measure,"  he  continued,  "they  threw  in  a  little 
more  on  each  mile,  and  sometimes  the  addition  was 
greater  than  the  original.  Harry  suggested  a  scale  of 

miles  for  the  Adirondacks  which  was  something  like  the  following: 


THE    MILE-STONE. 


ONE   MILE. 


A    LITTLE    MORE. 


80AI.E   OP   Mtl.EB. 


170 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


MAGGIE  S    LAKE. 


Jim  declared  that  the  miles  were  marked  off  in  the  Adirondacks  in 
the  same  way  as  in  the  backwoods  of  Maine  and  Minnesota.  "They 
measure  them  with  a  wolf  skin,  and  make  110  allowance  for  the  tail ;  and, 

as  the   tail   is    the   longest 
part    of    it,  the    miles    are 
••  *ij"      P11^0^  ont  a  good  deal  far- 

i^oife  ther  than  suits  the  taste  of 

the   tender -footed   visitors 
from  the  city." 

They  reached  the  stream, 
and  then  Jim  left  them  a 
few  minutes,  while  he  went 

to  a  clump  of  bushes  a  little  way  along  the  bank.  From  beneath  the 
bushes  he  pulled  a  skiff,  which  had  been  so  carefully  concealed  that  only 
a  careful  search  on  the  part  of  a  stranger  would  have  found  it. 

"  We'll  go  down  about  a  mile,"  said  Jim,  "and  then  we'll  make  a 
carry  to  Maggie's  Lake.  'Tisn't  known  on  the  maps  as  Maggie's,  but 
that's  the  name  I  gave  it  for  an  old  sweetheart  of  mine.  It's  full  of 
trout,  and  you'll  have  all  the  sport  you  want.  You  can  fish  along  the 
stream  while  we  are  floating  down,  and  you'll  be  sure  to  take  something 
weighing  half  a  pound  or  so.  We 
haven't  time  to  fish  the  stream  very 
carefully,  as  I  want  to  get  you  to  the 
lake  before  the  sun  gets  too  high  for 
comfort." 

The  Doctor  got  his  tackle  in  read- 
iness, and  as  the  boat  floated  along  he 
threw  a  fly  on  the  water.  Instantly 
there  was  a  whirl  in  the  clear  stream, 
and  the  fly  disappeared.  The  line 
straightened  out,  and  the  fish  that  was 
evidently  the  cause  of  the  straight- 
ening made  for  the  shelter  of  a  stump 
which  overhung  the  stream.  The 
Doctor  played  him  a  moment,  and  then  reeled  him  in  ;  he  was  safely 
brought  into  the  boat,  and  proved  to  be  a  half-pounder,  as  Jim  had  pre- 
dicted. 

Harry  was  next  instructed  how  to  throw  a  fly,  and  succeeded  very 
well.  He  made  two  or  three  casts  without  success,  but  finally  a  trout  rose 
and  took  the  deceptive  bait.  He  was  well  hooked,  and  the  reel  brought 


JIM    AND    THE    BOAT. 


CROSSING  A  "CARRY.' 


171 


OAKS    AND    PADDLES    AT    STARTING. 


him  in  to  the  side  of  the  boat,  where  he  was  secured  by  the  landing- 
net.     Then  George  made  an  attempt,  and  by  the  time  he  had  caught  his 

fish,  a  small  affair  weighing  about  three 
ounces,  the  boat  was  at  the  carry.  The 
boys  had  been  too  busy  with  trouting 
to  ask  about  the  carry,  but  now  they 
wished  to  know  what  it  was. 

"  It's  a  carry,  and  no  mistake,"  said 
Jim.  "You  have  to  carry  everything 
on  your  backs  from  here  to  the  lake, 
and  when  you  have  a  lot  of  camp  stuff 
to  shoulder,  it's  no  joke.  We  sha'n't 
have  a  hard  time  of  it  to-day,  as  we 
haven't  much  besides  the  skiff,  but  we'll 
have  all  we  want. 

"  Some  gentlemen  that  were  here 
last  summer  didn't  think  it  was  fun. 
There  were  two  of  'em  with  me  one 

hot  day,  and  we  started  for  a  carry  over  to  the  lake.     I  took  the  boat, 

just  as  I'm  going  to  take  it  now,  and  one  of  the  gentlemen  said  he'd  carry 

the  oars  and  paddles,  while  the  other  took  a  gun  and  a  pair  of  boots,  along 

with  a  bundle  that  contained  the  day's  provisions. 
"  You  should  have  seen  those  two  men  start  off. 

oars  and  paddles  gathered  'em  under  his  arms,  and 

went  on  up  the  hill  as  brisk  as  you  please,  and  the 

other  fellow  was  after  him  in  a  few  moments.     I  took 

the  boat  on  rny  'shoulders  and  followed,  and  pretty 

soon  I  overtook  Mr.  Paddler  with  everything  flying 

'this  way  and  that.     He  couldn't  hold  'em  together  at 

all,  and  the  more  he  tried  to  gather  'em  up  the  more 

he  couldn't  do  anything  of  the  sort. 

"  The  other  one  stopped  and  laughed  at  him,  but 

he  hadn't  gone  far  before  he  didn't  feel  at  all  like  a 

laugh.     When  we  got  to  the  lake,  he  said  the  weight 

of  the  things  he  was  carrying  began  to  increase  before 

he  had  gone  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  and  after  that  every 

step  he   took   added   a   pound  to   his   burden.     He 

thought   the   gun    must   have   weighed   a    thousand 

pounds  at  least  before  he  unloaded  ;  and  as  for  the  boots,  every  nail  in 

heels  and  soles  was  equal  to  a  railway-spike. 


The  one  with  the 


OUV    AND    BOOTS    AT 
STARTING. 


172 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


OARS    AND    PADDLES    ON    THE    WAY. 


"It  is  astonishing  how  a  load  in- 
creases as  you  go  along,  if  yon  are  not 
used  to  carrying  it.  At  first  it  seems 
too  small  for  your  strength,  and  you 
wonder  they  did  not  give  you  some- 
thing more.  A  quarter  of  a  mile 
changes  your  views  materially,  and  by 
the  time  you  have  made  a  mile  you 
wonder  if  you  will  really  be  able  to 
go  a  dozen  yards  farther.  So  my  ad- 
vice is  never  to  undertake  anything  in 
the  wilderness  that  will  fatigue  you 
unnecessarily,  and  if  you  have  a  load 
to  carry,  get  some  one  else  to  take  it 
if  you  can." 

They  reached  the  lake  and  launch- 
ed the  boat,  and  then  the  trout-fishing 
began  in  dead  earnest.  The  Doctor 

thought  the  fish  were  altogether  too  easy  to  catch,  and  he  deprecated 
their  abundance,  as  there  was  not  sufficient  skill  required  for  their  capture 
to  make  it  exciting.  Jim  said  he  could  easily  fix  that  for  him  by  bringing 
a  lot  of  strangers  there  the  following  year,  and  then  the  trout  would  soon 
be  wild  enough  for  his  taste.  The 
Doctor  smiled,  and  said  he  would 
choose  the  least  of  the  two  evils,  and 
the  lake  could  remain  undisturbed. 

The  boys  acquitted  themselves 
finely,  and  in  spite  of  their  inexperi- 
ence each  of  them  bagged  three  or 
four  fish  that  were  estimated  to  aver- 
age half  a  pound.  The  sun  was  high 
in  the  heavens,  and  the  air  grew 
warmer,  so  that  Jim  suggested  a  ces- 
sation of  sport  for  a  while.  He  di- 
rected the  boat  to  the  shore,  and  said 
they  would  go  and  put  up  at  the  ho- 
tel. The  boys  looked  in  the  locality 
he  indicated,  but  no  hotel  was  visi- 
ble, and  Harry  intimated  as  much  to 
their  guide. 


GUN    AND    BOOTS    ON    ARRIVAL. 


HOTEL   IN  THE   BACKWOODS. 


173 


"  Well,  'twas  there  a  week  ago,"  he  replied,  "  and  I  don't  think  any- 
body has  carried  it  off." 

When  the  boat  reached  the  land  the  boys  sprung  out,  and  made  an- 
other search  for  the  hotel.  They  soon  found  it,  but  it  was  hardly  as  ex- 
tensive as  they  had  imagined.  After  they  had  examined  it  throughout, 
George  asked  Jim  how  the  building  was  constructed. 

"It's  easy  enough  to  make,"  was  the  reply,  "provided  you've  got  the 
place  and  the  materials.  The  first  thing  to  be  done  is  to  pick  out  a  spot 
where  you  can  have  a  clean  space  eighteen  or  twenty  feet  across  after 
you've  cleared  off  the  brush.  You  want  an  old  log  on  the  southern  side 
of  your  clearing;  then  you  put  up  a  couple  of  posts  for  the  front,  and  a 


IOTKI,    IN    THIi    BACKWOODS. 


stout  stick  from  one  to  .the  other  makes  the  beam  for  placing  the  rafters 
so  that  they  will  slope  back  to  the  log.  Next  you  girdle  a  few  hemlock- 
trees  in  the  neighborhood  and  strip  off  the  bark,  and  this  bark  makes  an 
excellent  covering  for  roof  and  sides.  The  front  is  left  open,  a  fire  is  built 
a  little  way  off  to  throw  its  heat  inside  during  the  chilly  night,  and  your 
hotel  is  complete.  You  make  the  ground  inside  as  smooth  as  possible, 
and  then  you  cover  it  with  hemlock  boughs  a  foot  or  two  in  thickness, 
and  you  have  a  bed  that  beats  all  the  spring  mattresses  ever  invented." 

"  I  don't  know  a  bed  that  can  equal  a  hemlock  one,"  said  the  Doctor, 
"  when  you  are  tfred  out  with  a  long  day's  tramp  in  the  mountains,  and 
have  come  into  camp  for  rest.  The  aroma  of  the  boughs  is  delicious  be- 
yond description,  and  so  is  that  which  is  thrown  off  by  the  freshly  peeled 
bark  on  the  roof.  No  princess  in  the  softest  couch  ever  seen  in  a  royai 
palace  could  sleep  more  soundly  than  I  have  on  a  bed  of  boughs  from  a 


174: 


THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


THK    KITCHIiN. 


tree,  and  no  epicure  conld  possibly  enjoy  his  pet  dishes  any  better  than  I 
have  enjoyed  the  simple  fare  of  the  camp." 

"Hunger  is  said  to  make  the  best  sauce,"  remarked  Harry,  "  and  per- 
haps weariness  makes  the  softest  bed." 

"  We'll  see  about  the  hunger  part  of  it,"  said 
Jim;  "follow  me  to  the  kitchen,  and  you'll  see 
how  they  cook  at  this  hotel." 

They  followed  the  guide  to  the  kitchen,  and 
Jim  remarked,  as  he  led  the  way,  that  he  hoped 
they  would  not  leave  the  door  open.  The  kitch- 
en was  as  primitive  as  the  sleeping-quarters.  It 
consisted  of  a  couple  of  sticks  set  in  the  ground, 
with  a  horizontal  one  extending  across  them. 
Hooks  are  made  of  pieces  of  the  birch-trees  in 
the  vicinity,  and  when  a  fire  is  kindled  between 
the  posts  the  kitchen  is  ready  for  its  duties. 

From  a  hollow  log  near  by  Jim  drew  a  kettle 
and  a  frying-pan.  The  materials  for  the  dinner  were  procured  from  the 
parcel  they  had  brought  from  the  house,  and  also  from  the  trout-baskets. 
In  fact,  the  trout  formed  the  principal  dish  of  the  dinner;  and  under 
Jim's,  supervision  they  had  baked  trout,  boiled  trout,  fried  trout,  and 
more  trout  when  they  wanted  it.  Some  potatoes  were  boiled  in  the  ket- 
tle ;  tea  was  made  in  a  tin  cup ;  and  a  few  dry  biscuits  came  out  of  the 
mysterious  bag,  to  serve  as  bread. 
Jim  was  an  adept  in  mountain  cook- 
ery, and  knew  how  to  do  a  great  deal 
with  very  limited  materials.  The 
backwoodsmen  of  the  Adirondacks 
are  famous  for  producing  remarkable 
results  with  only  a  kettle  and  a  fry- 
ing-pan, and  would  put  to  shame  some 
of  the  skilled  chefs  of  the  city. 

From  the  kitchen  they  went  to 
the  dining-saloon,  which  had  a  roof 
much  like  that  of  the  sleeping-room, 
but  it  was  open  all  around,  and  had 
a  table  in  the  centre.  The  table  was 
covered  with  hemlock  bark — the  same  as  the  roof,  and  it  had  the  distin- 
guished honor  of  a  seat  made  from  a  puncheon,  or  plank,  split  from  a 
tree,  and  shaped  with  an  axe.  This  was  an  achievement  of  the  guide 


THE    DINING-SALOON. 


A  FISHERMAN'S  DINNER. 


175 


in  a  former  visit,  when  a  party  of  gentlemen  was  camping  there  and 
wanted  to  be  luxurious.  Usually  in  a  backwoods  camp  a  log  is  the 
best  seat  that  can  be  afforded,  and  quite  as  often  there  is  no  seat  at  all, 
and  no  table. 

The  trout  and  other  edibles  were  placed  on  the  table,  and  the  partyi 
sat  down  to  a  delicious  meal  that  had  the  very  best  of  seasoning — a  rav- 
enous appetite.  After  dinner  they  rested  awhile ;  then  the  fishing  was 
renewed,  and  about  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  Jim  suggested  that  it 
was  time  to  go  home.  The  pleasures  of  the  carry  were  renewed,  and 
then  followed  the  paddle  up  stream  and  the  walk  along  the  road.  It  was 
dusk  when  they  reached  the  house  and  were  welcomed  by  Mrs.  Fisher, 
who  complimented  the  boys  on  their  success  in  their  first  day  among  the 
trout. 


A    CAMP    IN    THE    AUIRONDACKS. 


176  THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER   XIV. 

INCIDENTS   OF  DEER-HUNTING. 

rpHE  next  scheme  of  the  amateur  Nimrods  was  for  a  deer-hunt.  An- 
-•-  other  guide  to  assist  Jim  was  engaged,  and  the  guns  and  other  nec- 
essaries of  the  chase  were  put  in  readiness.  The  preparations  consumed 
the  entire  day,  and  it  was  determined  that  all  should  go  to  bed  in  good 
season,  and  be  ready  for  starting  as  soon  as  the  sun  was  up.  The  plan 
was  carried  out  to  the  letter,  and  by  the  appointed  time  the  party  was 
under  way. 

The  route  was  the  same  as  on  the  fishing-excursion  as  far  as  Maggie's 
Lake,  and  thence  over  a  portage,  or  carry,  to  another  sheet  of , water, 
known  as  Crystal  Lake.  Jim  explained  that  two  boats  would  be  needed 
for  the  party,  but  it  would  only  be  necessary  to  take  one  along,  as  he  had 
a  bark  canoe  concealed  in  the  bushes  on  the  edge  of  Crystal  Lake.  In 
spite  of  thib  abundance  of  boats  and  the  extra  guide,  the  boys  had  all  they 
wanted  to  do  in  carrying  their  share  of  the  burdens  over  the  portage.  A 
camp  was  to  be  formed  on  Crystal  Lake,  and  therefore  they  had  more 
supplies  and  equipments  than  when  they  were  out  for  only  a  single  day. 

They  reached  the  lake  about  noon,  and  selected  the  site  for  their  camp. 
The  afternoon  was  spent  in  arranging  it,  and  in  preparing  for  a  deer-hunt 
at  night.  George  wondered  why  they  should  hunt  in  the  night  rather 
than  in  the  daytime,  but  his  wonder  ceased  when  Jim  explained  the  sys- 
tem to  him. 

"You  see,"  said  Jim,  "the  deer  come  down  to  the  lake  at  night  to 
feed  on  the  lily-pads.  They  wade  out  into  the  water  where  it  is  half-way 
up  their  sides,  and  there  they  stay  till  they  have  eaten  all  they  want ;  then 
they  go  back  to  the  woods  and  stay  there,  unless  some  one  hunts  them 
with  dogs,  when  quite  likely  they  will  come  to  the  water  again.  It  is  a 
favorite  dodge  with  deer  to  swim  a  lake  or  river  when  the  dogs  are  after 
them,  as  they  can  destroy  the  scent,  and  throw  the  brutes  off  the  track. 
We'll  show  you  to-night  how  we  hunt  deer  on  the  water." 

The  party  was  arranged  in  this  wise :  the  Doctor  and  Jim  were  to  go 


STARTING  ON   A   DEER-HUNT. 


177 


in  the  skiff,  while  the  boys  with  Bill,  the  new  guide,  were  to  occupy  the 
canoe.  The  latter  were  not  to  do  any  shooting,  but  simply  to  look  on 
and  see  how  the  Doctor  managed  it.  "And  above  all  things,"  said  the 
Doctor,  "  yon  must  make  no  noise,  as  the  deer  will  take  fright  very  easily, 
and  be  off  for  the  woods  before  I  can  get  a  shot." 


VIEW    ON    CRYSTAL    LAKE. 


The  boys  promised  to  comply  with  the  Doctor's  wishes,  and  Harry 
suggested  that  the  best  way  of  doing  so  would  be  to  obey  the  directions 
of  Bill  without  question  or  hesitation.  George  agreed  with  him,  and  with 
this  understanding  the  party  entered  their  boats  at  the  appointed  hour. 
There  was  no  moon,  and  Bill  explained  to  the  boys  that  it  was  just  the 
kind  of  night  they  wanted. 

The  skiff  and  canoe  moved  away  from  the  landing-place  in  front  of 
the  camp,  and  struck  out  for  the  centre  of  the  lake,  to  cross  to  the  other 

12 


178 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


shore.  Jim  handled  the  oars  vigorously,  and  shot  the  skiff  forward  with 
great  rapidity,  while  Bill  followed  closely  behind  him  with  his  powerful 
strokes  of  the  paddle.  As  they  neared  the  shore  Jim  slackened  speed, 
and  substituted  a  paddle  for  the  oars ;  and  Bill  cautioned  the  boys  to  be 
perfectly  still.  They  were  not  to  speak  even  in  a  whisper,  and  were  not 
to  move  a  muscle  till  they  heard  the  report  of  the  Doctor's  rifle.  The 
position  they  occupied  was  not  altogether  comfortable,  as  they  were  seated 
in  the  bottom  of  the  canoe  without  any  rest  for  their  backs ;  but  they 
cheerfully  complied  with  the  regulations  that  had  been  established,  and 
were  as  still  as  a  pair  of  mice. 

The  boats  went  along  in  absolute  silence,  and  soon  came  to  the  lily- 
pads  growing  in  the  water  in  a  line  extending  a  hundred  yards  or  so  from 


m 


DEER   AT    HOME. 


the  shore.     A  sound  reached  them  as  though  a  heavy  body  was  dragging 
slowly  along,  and  now  Jim  lighted  a  candle  in  a  shaded  box  on  the  front 


HUNTING  AT  NIGHT. 


179 


of  the  skiff.  It  was  enclosed  on  three  sides,  but  open  on  the  fourth,  and 
the  opening  allowed  the  light  of  the  candle  to  be  thrown  forward,  while 
the  boat  and  all  it  contained  were  in  perfect  shadow. 

The  Doctor  was  directly  behind  the  light,  with  his  rifle  ready  to  bring 
to  the  shoulder.  The  lily-pads  abounded  in  frogs,  who  were  possibly  try- 
ing their  voices,  with  a  view  to  organizing  a  concert  troupe  or  going  on  a 
serenading  excursion.  As  the  boats  slid  gently  along  they  disturbed  the 
amphibious  vocalists,  and  the -songs  came  to  an  end  with  a  loud  "bo- 
chug"  that  announced 

the  departure  of  ;i  frog  ,   ;  v-   -  _  .  , ._  : , 

for  a  more  secure  retreat 
in  the  water.  Finding 
they  were  not  harmed 
they  soon  returned  to 
their  perches,  and  the 
songs  were  renewed  in 
the  rear  of  the  boats 
witb  only  a  short  inter- 
val of  suspension. 

The  dragging  sound 
w^as  changed  to  the  steps 
of  an  animal  in  the  wa- 
ter, and  the  practised 

ears  of  the  guide  and  the  Doctor  told  them  that  a  fine  deer  was  likely  to 
become  their  prize,  if  they  exercised  proper  precaution.  The  canoe  was 
not  a  dozen  yards  behind  the  skiff,  and  directly  in  line  with  it,  so  that 
what  was  visible  to  the  Doctor  was  also  visible  to  the  boys. 

Soon  the  horns  of  a  fine  buck  were  plainly  perceptible  in  the  rays  of 
light  from  the  candle,  and  they  seemed  to  the  boys  more  like  the  dead 
branches  of  a  tree  than  the  ornaments  and  pride  of  a  living  animal.  The 
skiff  and  the  canoe  were  propelled  without  the  least  sound,  and  not  even 
with  a  ripple  of  the  water.  The  guides  did  not  lift  the  paddles  to  the 
surface  or  allow  them  to  touch  the  sides  of  the  boats,  and  the  whole  op- 
eration was  so  perfectly  performed  that  not  even  the  boys  in  the  canoe 
could  hear  the  least  sound  to  indicate  that  Bill  was  with  them. 

Nearer  and  nearer  to  the  buck  went  the  skiff.  The  animal  became 
suspicious,  and  paused  to  look  at  the  light  that  came  streaming  over  the 
water.  His  alarm  ceased  for  a  moment,  and  he  renewed  his  feeding, 
which  gave  Jim  an  opportunity  to  approach  more  nearly.  Again  the 
buck  raises  his  head,  and  this  time  he  throws  back  his  horns  and  gazes 


THIS    DOCTOK  8    DKKIt. 


180  THE  YOUNG  NIMKODS. 

more  earnestly  than  before.  There  is  danger  near,  and  he  thinks  it  well 
to  flee,  but,  with  the  curiosity  peculiar  to  all  members  of  the  deer  family, 
he  will  have  another  look  at  the  strange  light. 

Now  is  the  Doctor's  chance — now  or  never,  as  the  deer  will  be  gone 
in  another  moment.  The  rifle  is  raised,  and  the  next  instant  the  echoes 
of  the  lake  are  awakened  by  the  report.  The  shot  was  well  aimed,  and 
the  buck  has  fallen  in  the  water. 

The  stillness  was  ended  with  the  report  of  the  rifle.  Jim  drops  his 
paddle  and  resumes  the  oars,  and  he  pulls  with  all  his  might  to  where  the 
pride  of  the  forest  is  struggling  in  the  water.  Bill  dashes  forward  with 
the  canoe,  and  comes  in  on  one  side  of  the  deer,  while  Jim  approaches  on 
the  other.  Jim  draws  his  knife  and  cuts  the  throat  of  the  struggling  an- 
imal, and  in  a  few  minutes  the  deer  has  been  transformed  to  venison. 

It  is  no  light  work  to  get  their  prize  into  the  skiff,  and  the  united  ef- 
forts of  the  party  are  needed  to  accomplish  it.  Jim  and  Bill  are  out  in 
the  water,  which  is  less  than  three  feet  deep,  but  the  Doctor  and  the  boys 
keep  their  places  in  their  respective  boats.  They  secure  their  prize  at 
last  and  are  off  for  the  camp,  and  the  silence  that  was  maintained  in  the 
time  of  the  hunt  is  fully  atoned  for  by  the  shouts  and  peals  of  laughter 
that  sound  and  resound  over  the  waters.  The  boys  are  jubilant  over  their 
first  deer-hunt;  Bill  tells  them  they  behaved  handsomely  in  following 
his  directions  and  keeping  perfectly  still,  and  he  is  confident  they  will 


GEORGES    FISH. 


make  the  kind  of  hunters  of  which  the  Adirondacks  will  be  proud.  It  is 
arranged  that  they  will  have  a  hunt  on  their  own  account  at  the  first  op- 
portunity; and  with  lively  anticipations  of  the  time  when  they  can  bring 
down  their  first  deer,  they  are  soon  asleep  on  their  beds  of  boughs. 

The  whole  party  slept  till  a  late  hour,  as  they  had  been  thoroughly 
fatigued  with  the  journey  to  camp  and  the  excitement  of  the  hunt  on  the 
lake.  In  the  afternoon  they  "stirred  up  the  trout,"  as  Jim  expressed  it, 
and  had  a  fine  haul  for  the  frying-pan.  While  in  the  middle  of  the  lake, 


CAT-FISH   MISTAKEN  FOR  TROUT. 


181 


Jim  lowered  a  line  to  the  bottom,  and  said  he  would  show  the  boys  one 
of  the  queerest  fish  they  had  ever  seen,  and  not  half  as  handsome  as  the 
trout. 

In  a  little  while  there  was  a  tug  at  the  hook.  Jim  gave  the  line  to 
George  and  told  him  to  haul  in. 
George  drew  away,  and  soon  there 
came  before  his  astonished  gaze  a 
remarkable  product  of  the  water.  It 
had  a  mouth  of  enormous  propor- 
tions, and  Harry  thought  the  fish 
could  go  down  his  own  throat  with- 
out much  trouble,  and  with  no  great 
strain  on  his  jaws.  It  had  horns, 
and  was  black  as  a  coal,  and  its  gen- 
eral get-up  was  by  no  means  prepos- 
sessing. Jim  said  it  was  a  cat-fish, 
peculiar  to  the  lakes,  and  over  where 
the  tourists  were  thickest  they  some- 
times palmed  these  fish  on  strangers 
for  genuine  lake  trout. 

"  There  was  a  man  here  one  sum- 
mer/' said  Jim,  "who  was  half  dead 
when  he  came  to  the  Adirondacks, 
and  he  was  green  as  he  was  feeble. 
He'd  never  b.een  in  the  woods  before, 
and  when  he  first  came  he'd  swallow 
anything.  .We  had  him  out  the 
first  afternoon  to  catch  cat-fish,  under 
pretence  that  they  were  trout,  and 
he  hauled  in  a  dozen  and  took  'em 
round  to  the  hotel  in  great  triumph, 
per,  but  he  was  disappointed  in  the  taste,  which  seemed  to  him  a  trifle  too 
muddy  for  trout.  Next  morning  he  found  how  he'd  been  sold,  and  was 
mad  for  awhile,  but  he  got  over  it  in  an  hour  or  so,  and  laughed  as  heart- 
ily as  anybody  about  the  joke. 

"  They  called  him  '  Judge,'  but  why,  I  don't  know,  as  he  was  the 
worst  judge  of  fish  I  ever  saw ;  but  he  wasn't  ashamed  to  learn,  and  ev- 
ery day  he  was  out  on  the  water  or  tramping  in  the  woods.  In  a  month 
he  knew  every  fish  in  the  waters,  and  he  had  made  an  acquaintance  with 
two  or  three  deer  by  shooting  at  'em,  though  he  didn't  bring  one  of  "em 


THE    JUDGE    GOING    TO    THE    AIMHONUACKS. 


He  had  some  of  'em  fried  for  sup- 


182 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


down.  But  what  was  more,  he  got  his  health  back,  and  was  gay  as  a  bird 
after  the  first  week  here.  He  hired  me  to  go  with  him  all  summer.  I 
thought  I'd  have  an  easy  time  of  it  when  I  looked  at  him,  but  he  really 
gave  me  the  liveliest  season  I  ever  had,  as  he  wasn't  quiet  an  hour  at  a 
time,  but  always  wanting  to  go  somewheres. 

"  There  was  a  friend  of  his  called  the  '  Professor,'  who  was  a  great 
fisherman,  only  he  could  never  stand  the  flies.  The  flies  could  stand  him 
a  great  deal  better  than  he  could  them ;  they  used  to  hover  round  him 
pretty  much  all  the  time,  and  the  more  he  didn't  like  'em  the  more  they'd 
buzz  and  make  him  unhappy.  He  was  a  comical  object  when  a  fly'd 
light  on  his  nose,  and  he'd  look  through  his  specs  and  twist  his  lips  up  as 
though  he'd  like  to  close  'em  on  the  fly  and  make  an  end  of  him.  He 
was  about  as  healthy  a  specimen  as  the  Judge  before  the  season  was  over, 
and  I'm  sure  the  summer  in  the  Adirondacks  did  him  ever  so  much  good. 


THE   JUDGE    AFTEK    A    MONTH    IN    THE    ADIRONDACKS. 


TRICKS   OF  THE   JUDGE   AND  THE   PROFESSOR. 


183 


THE    1'KOFESSOK. 


So 


"The  professor  was  a  great  joker  in  his  way,  and  used  to  put  up 
harmless  pranks  on  the  other  members  of  the  party.     One  day  he  got  a 
deer-skin  that  had  been  stuffed  by  some  tourist  and  left  in  the  hotel  till 
the   owner    could   send   for   it.      The 
professor  had  it  carried  out  on  the  sly 
and  taken  over  the  lake,  and  then  the 
next  day  he  managed  to  get  the  judge 
over  there  on  a  deer-hunt.     Of  course 
the  judge  took  a  shot  at  the  stuffed 
skin,  and  then,  as    the   animal   didn't 
move,  he  fired  again  to  make  sure  of 
bringing  him    down.     Of  course   the 
laugh   was   on   him,  but  he  got  even 
with  the  professor  before  the  day  was 
out. 

"  When  they  came  back  they  took 
a  turn  among  the  trout,  and  each  of 
'em  caught  a  handsome  specimen. 
The  judge  thought  his  was  a  trifle 

the  heaviest,  and  the  professor  thought  the  same  of  his  own  fish, 
they  made  a  bet  on  the  weight  of  the  fishes,  and  the  loser  was  to  pay  for 
the  suppers  at  the  hotel. 

"When  the  fishes  were  weighed,  the  judge's  was  found  to  be  half  an 
ounce  heavier  than  the  professor's.  The  professor  paid  for  the  suppers 
accordingly,  and  when  it  was  all  over  he  said, 

"  'I  might  as  well  own  up,  judge,  that  I  tried  to  cheat  you;  but  your 
fish  was  the  heaviest  after  all.' 

"  '  Is  that  so  ?'  the  judge  asked. 

"  '  Yes,  I  own  up,  judge,  that  I  tried  to  play  it  on  you,  and  was  beaten. 
I  thought  my  fish  might  possibly  be  a  grain  or  so  lighter  than  yours,  and 
so  I  crowded  four  bullets  down  his  throat  while  we  were  on  the  way 
home.' 

"  'I  thought  the  same  thing  about  mine,  professor,  and  so  I  put  seven 
bullets  down  his  throat,"  says  the  judge;  "and  if  you  rip  him  open 
you'll  find  'em.' 

"They  ripped  the  fishes  open,  and  sure  enough  there  were  the  bullets 
just  as  the  two  of  'em  had  said.  It  was  a  case  of  diamond  cut  diamond, 
and  the  judge  said  he'd  call  it  square  for  shooting  at  a  stuffed  deer. 

"We  had  a  funny  time  one  night  in  that  same  camp,"  the  guide  con- 
tinued. "  A  lot  of  bottled  beer  had  been  brought  up  in  the  boat,  and 


184 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


one  of  the  gentlemen  wanted  some  in  the  course  of  the  evening.  The 
bottles  were  in  a  bag,  and  one  of  the  guides — an  old  fellow  they  called 
Jake — said  he'd  go  down  to  the  boat  and  bring  up  bag  and  contents.  Off 
he  went  in  the  dark,  and  soon  we  heard  an  explosion  that  sounded  like  a 
dozen  pistols. 

"We  couldn't  imagine  what  had  happened,  and  we  went  down  to  the 


JAKE    AND    THE    BEEK. 


landing  in  double-quick  time.     Half-way  there  we  saw  a  sight  that  was 
worth  a  dollar  to  look  at. 

"There  was  old  Jake  sprawled  over  a  log,  with  his  coat-tails  caught 
on  the  limb  of  a  tree.  The  bag  was  on  another  limb,  and  there  were 
streams  of  fizz  and  froth  coming  out  of  it  in  a  dozen  places.  Jake  was 
scared  out  of  his  wits,  and  his  hair  stood  up  like  a  porcupine's  quills;  he 
couldn't  tell  what  had  happened,  and  all  he  knew  was  that  he  took  the 
bag  on  his  back  and  started  for  camp,  and  of  a  sudden  the  bag  busted. 
He  said  he  was  thrown  into  the  tree  by  the  force  of  the  explosion,  and 
was  covered  all  over  with  froth.  Then  we  saw  how  it  was :  the  weather 
was  warm  that  day,  and  the  beer  had  been  shaken  up  a  good  deal  on  the 
way.  It  had  '  worked '  under  the  heat  and  shaking,  and  was  all  ready  to 


DEER-HUNT   ON  THE   LAKE. 


185 


burst  when  Jake  picked  it  up.  This  final  shaking  was  too  much  for  it, 
and  when  one  bottle  went  off  the  others  followed  suit. 

In  the  evening  the  boys  went  out  in  the  skiff  with  Bill,  leaving  the 
Doctor  and  Jim  at  the  camp.  Bill  said  it  was  necessary  to  make  an  early 
start,  as  they  would  not  be  likely  to  find  any  deer  at  the  hunting-ground 
of  the  previous  evening,  and  he  proposed  going  to  a  small  lake  connected 
with  the  one  where  they  were.  They  were  off  a  couple  of  hours  before 
sunset,  and  it  was  Bill's  plan  to  pass  to  the  smaller  lake  before  dusk,  and 
then  rest  till  the  proper  hour  in  the  evening  for  the  hunt. 

As  they  neared  the  end  of  the  lake  Harry  saw  something  moving  in 
the  water  some  distance  ahead  of  them,  and  called  attention  to  it. 

"  A  deer,  as  I'm  alive !"  said  Bill ;  "  perhaps  we  can  get  a  shot  at 
him." 

Bill  threw  his  whole  strength  to  the  oars,  and  pulled  as  though  he  was 
a  champion  rower  in  a  boat-race.  He  steered  the  boat  so  as  to  intercept 
the  deer  just  as  he  would  reach  the  land,  and  told  the  boys  to  get  ready 
for  a  shot  at  him. 


THE  DEER  SWIMMING  THK  LAKE. 


A  rifle  and  a  shot-gun  comprised  the  arms  of  the  youths,  and  they 
were  made  ready  for  business.  The  small  shot  in  the  gun  were  drawn, 
and  some  heavy  buck-shot  took  their  place. 


186  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

The  deer  saw  the  boat  coming ;  he  saw  danger  confronting  him,  and 
stopped,  as  if  uncertain  whether  to  go  on  or  turn  back.  His  delay 
brought  the  boat  nearer,  and  rendered  his  capture  more  certain  than 
before.  If  he  had  kept  straight  on  he  would  have  had  a  good  chance 
of  escape,  as  it  required  all  the  force  of  Bill's  powerful  arm  to  come 
within  shooting  distance  before  he  reached  the  land,  and  his  feet  would 
be  touching  the  firm  earth  at  the  instant  the  boys  would  fire  their  shot. 
If  it  failed,  he  would  be  out  of  their  sight  in  half  a  dozen  bounds. 

Harry  took  the  shot-gun,  and  gave  the  rifle  to  George.  Bill  told  them 
to  hold  their  fire  till  he  slackened  the  speed  of  the  boat,  and  rendered 
their  aim  as  certain  as  he  could.  The  deer  redoubled  his  efforts,  but  to 
no  purpose,  and  the  boat  was  within  twenty  yards  of  him  before  he  could 
touch  the  shelving  shore  of  the  lake. 

Bill  slackened  speed,  and  thus  steadied  the  boat;  then  he  told  George 
to  fire  with  the  rifle,  and  take  good  aim  before,  he  pulled  the  trigger. 
George  fired,  and  the  deer  gave  a  convulsive  jump  half  out  of  the  wa- 
ter; then  he  fell  back,  and  renewed  his  swimming  toward  the  shore. 

"  You've  hit  him,"  said  Bill,  "  but  you  didn't  finish  him.  Now,  Harry, 
give  him  the  shot-gun." 

Harry  did  as  he  was  instructed,  and  the  shot  was  fatal.  It  was  deliv- 
ered at  a  distance  of  not  more  than  ten  or  twelve  yards,  and  was  well 
aimed.  Bill  brought  the  boat  along-side  with  a  few  strokes  of  the  oars, 
and  the  prize  was  secured.  It  was  a  medium-sized  buck,  with  well-devel- 
oped antlers,  and  his  body  was  in  fine  condition. 

"  Shall  we  go  on  now,  and  have  a  trial  of  fire-hunting,  or  shall  we  take 
our  deer  home  to  camp  ?"  Bill  addressed  this  question  to  the  boys,  and 
waited  for  their  answer  before  taking  up  the  oars  again. 

The  youths  debated  the  question  for  a  few  minutes,  and  came  to  a 
very  sensible  conclusion.  They  had  enjoyed  the  sensation  of  shooting  a 
deer,  and  each  had  taken  part  in  the  sport.  They  had  more  than  enough 
venison  for  their  use  in  camp,  and  it  would  be  a  waste  to  kill  more  and 
risk  the  necessity  of  throwing  any  of  it  away.  Bill  was  no  doubt  some- 
what tired  with  his  exertion  in  rowing  the  boat  during  the  chase,  and 
their  own  nerves  might  not  be  altogether  steady  enough  for  a  night  hunt. 
They  would  let  the  deer  alone  for  that  evening,  and  be  content  with  what 
they  had  done. 

But  they  were  so  near  the  end  of  the  lake,  that  Bill  took  them  to  see 
the  passage  before  going  back  to  camp.  The  ground  was  marshy,  and  it 
was  necessary  to  propel  the  boat  with  a  pole  for  two  or  three  hundred 
yards.  There  had  been  a  log  directly  across  the  passage,  but  some  of  the 


RETURNING  TO   CAMP. 


187 


woodmen  had  cut  a  way  through  it  sufficiently  wide  to  permit  the  passage 
of  a  boat.     From  this  opening  they  could  look  through  to  the  small  lake 


ASSA.GE    BETWEEN    THE    LAKKS. 


where  they  had  intended  hunting  the  deer,  but  which  they  had  decided 
not  to  invade. 

They  paddled  leisurely  back  to  camp,  and  when  within  a  mile  or  so  of 
their  destination,  Bill  fired  a  couple  of  shots  in  rapid  succession  to  inform 
Jim  of  their  return,  and  to  intimate  that  a  supper  would  not  be  refused 
by  the  young  hunters  and  himself. 


188 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

OFF  FOR  THE  WEST.— INDIAN  VILLAGES  AND   DOG  TOWNS   ON   THE 
PLAINS. 

A  FTER  spending  a  week  on  the  shores  of  Crystal  Lake,  and  exploring 
-£^_  the  region  around  it,  the  party  returned  to  Mrs.  Fisher's.  The  boys 
had  their  deer-hunt  at  night,  and  were  successful  in  bagging  a  good  speci- 
men. As  before,  the  honors  of  the  chase  were  divided  between  them, 
since  a  shot  was  required  from  each  youth  to  secure  the  prize.  Time 
passed  rapidly,  and  almost  before  they  were  aware  of  it  their  month  in 
the  Adirondacks  came  to  an  end,  and  the  Doctor  announced  their  speedy 
return  to  the  city. 


TUB    KDSH    FOR    THE    WILDERNESS. 


OUT  OF  THE  WILDERNESS.  189 

They  came  out  from  their  retreat  in  the  backwoods,  and  took  the  route 
for  the  haunts  of  civilization.  They  met  scores  of  travellers  on  their  way 
to  the  mountains,  and  realized  the  full  force  of  Jim's  prediction  that  the 
Adirondacks  would  soon  be  so  overrun  with  summer  visitors  that  there 
would  be  two  hunters  for  every  deer  in  the  mountains,  and  a  fisherman 
for  every  trout  in  the  streams  and  lakes. 

The  return  journey  was  made  by  way  of  Plattsburg  and  Lake  Cham- 
plain,  the  steamer  bringing  them  to  Whitehall,  where  they  took  the  rail- 


: 


\VICST\VAKD    BY    RAIL. 


way  for  New  York.  The  boys  went  back  to  their  studies  with  the  same 
vigorous  health  they  had  brought  from  the  pine-forests  of  Maine  the  pre- 
vious winter,  and  the  Doctor  tarried  awhile  in  the  metropolis  before  tak- 
ing his  departure  for  his  old  resort  on  the  banks  of  the  Kennebec,  where 
we  first  met  him. 

Another  and  a  longer  and  more  exciting  hunting  experience  was  plan- 
ned for  the  following  year.  "  I  will  let  you  know  all  about  it  before  we 
start,"  said  the  Doctor,  "and  while  you  are  occupied  with  your  books  I 
will  make  all  the  necessary  arrangements.  We  will  go  West  next  time, 
and  the  extent  of  our  journey  will  depend  upon  circumstances." 

True  to  his  promise,  the  Doctor  was  on  hand  at  the  appointed  time. 
He  had  made  all  arrangements,  and  one  morning  the  three  adventurers 
were  on  their  way  to  the  West  in  a  Pullman  car  on  the  Erie  Railway. 


190  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

Harry  thought  it  would  be  a  good  thing  if  they  could  keep  the  car  all 
through  their  journey,  and  live  in  it  while  limiting  bears  and  buffaloes ; 
but  George  rejected  the  proposal,  and  said  a  hunter  must  expect  to  rough 
it,  and  the  luxury  of  a  Pullman  car  was  hardly  in  keeping  with  a  sports- 
man's life.  Harry  blushed  at  the  mere  suspicion  that  he  really  wished 
what  he  had  proposed,  and  when  he  had  cleared  his  conscience  the  sub- 
ject of  conversation  was  changed. 

Westward  and  westward  they  held  their  way  till  they  reached  the 
banks  of  the  Missouri  River  at  Omaha.  There  the  Doctor  called  a  halt, 
and  said  their  experience  of  the  plains  would  begin. 

"Perhaps  we'll  start  from  here,"  said  the  Doctor,  "and  perhaps  we'll 
go  farther  west  to  get  fairly  among  the  wild  animals  that  we  wish  to  en- 
counter. I  can  tell  better  when  I  have  seen  a  gentleman  I  expect  to  meet 
here.  The  plains  begin  on  the  banks  of  the  Missouri,  but  we  won't  find 
much  game  in  this  neighborhood.  The  settlement  of  the  country  is  going 
on  with  great  rapidity,  and  every  year  the  extent  of  the  hunting-ground 
is  reduced. 

The  Doctor  was  not  long  in  finding  his  friend  and  obtaining  the  in- 
formation he  sought.  The  plan  of  the  campaign  was  speedily  arranged  ; 
the  last  necessities  of  the  outfit  were  procured  in  the  shops  and  stores  of 
Omaha ;  and  the  Doctor  told  his  young  companions  that  they  would  take 
the  next  train  for  the  West. 

They  did  as  arranged,  and  while  the  train  carried  them  along  the 
banks  of  the  Platte  River,  and  over  the  plains  of  Nebraska,  the  plan  of 
the  wild  life  they  were  about  to  experience  was  unfolded  to  them. 

"We  will  halt  at  South  Platte  Crossing,"  said  the  Doctor,  "and  there 
we  will  join  an  expedition  that  is  going  into  the  buffalo  country.  You 
will  learn  how  to  rough  it  on  the  plains,  as  you  will  sleep  on  the  ground 
at  night,  and  will  be  tired  enough  to  care  nothing  for  spring  beds  and 
line  carpets.  You  will  go  hungry  once  in  a  while  for  the  sake  of  variety, 
and  it  is  not  impossible  that  you  may  wish  yourselves  back  at  home  be- 
fore you  have  had  a  week's  experience  of  camping  out.  There  will  be 
a  good  deal  of  excitement  to  the  square  mile,  and  also  a  good  deal  of 
fatigue." 

At  South  Platte  Station  they  left  the  train  and  went  to  the  hotel,  but 
only  for  a  few  hours.  The  party  they  were  to  join  was  in  camp  about 
two  miles  away,  and,  as  it  wrould  start  in  the  morning,  it  was  thought  best 
for  our  friends  to  pass  the  night  in  one  of  the  tents  rather  than  remain 
in  the  hotel. 

Bright  and  early  the  camp  was  a  scene  of  activity.     Drivers  were 


AN  INDIAN   VILLAGE.  191 

feeding  their  teams  and  getting  the  harnesses  ready ;  the  cooks  were 
busy  with  preparations  for  breakfast ;  blankets  were  folded  and  stowed 
in  the  wagons;  the  loads  of  the  wagons  were  arranged;  riding- horses 
were  saddled ;  and  just  as  the  sun  was  fairly  above  the  horizon  the  order 
was  given  to  move,  and  no  sooner  was  it  given  than  it  was  obeyed. 

The  expedition  consisted  of  a  small  party  of  army  officers  and  their 
friends,  with  the  necessary  accompaniments  of  drivers  and  camp  assist- 
ants and  all  the  needed  outfit  for  a  campaign  in  the  buffalo  land.  The 
Doctor's  friend  had  arranged  that  he  and  the  youths  should  be  included, 
and  he  had  telegraphed  for  hiring  the  necessary  wagons,  teams,  and  sad- 
dle-horses, and  making  the  proper  purchases  for  their  participation  in  the 
excursion.  One  wagon  was  specially  devoted  to  our  three  friends,  and  it 
was  arranged  that  the  boys  could  take  their  choice  from  time  to  time  of 
riding  in  the  vehicle  or  exercising  their  skill  in  horsemanship. 

"Hurrah  for  the  buffaloes!"  said  Harry,  as  the  wagons  filed  out  from 
camp  and  moved  along  the  road. 

George  echoed  the  hurrah,  and  added  one  for  the  first  shot  they  would 
have  at  the  huge  game. 

A  few  miles  from  camp  they  passed  an  Indian  village,  and  some  of 
the  inhabitants  came  out  to  look  at  the  wagon-train,  and  possibly  to  spec- 
ulate on  the  chances  of  making  a  night  attack  and  capturing  the  horses. 
One  of  the  officers  rode  into  the  village,  and  invited  the  boys  to  accom- 
pany him,  and  we  may  be  sure  they  did  not  hesitate  a  moment  in  accept- 
ing. The  village  was  pleasantly  situated  among  some  trees  on  the  bank 
of  a  small  creek,  so  that  the  Indians  had  all  the  shade  and  water  they 
could  desire.  The  lodges  were  constructed  of  poles  and  buffalo  hides — 
the  poles  being  arranged  so  as  to  enclose  a  circle,  and  meeting  at  the  top, 
where  they  were  held  together  by  a  band  of  rawhide.  The  framework 
thus  formed  was  covered  with  hides  sewed  together.  An  opening  was 
left  at  the  top  for  the  escape  of  the  smoke,  and  another  in  the  side  served 
as  a  door. 

The  officer  led  the  way  inside  one  of  the  lodges,  and  the  boys  followed. 
There  was  not  much  to  be  seen  there,  and  the  place  was  so  filled  with 
smoke  from  a  fire  that  burnt  in  the  centre  of  the  floor  that  the  eyes  of 
the  visitors  were  affected  to  tears.  The  usual  custom  among  the  Indians 
is  to  make  a  fire  on  the  ground  in  the  middle  of  the  lodge,  and  let  the 
smoke  get  out  the  best  way  it  can.  The  most  of  it  goes  through  the 
opening  already  described,  and  the  balance  mixes  with  the  enclosed  air, 
and  is  anything  but  agreeable  to  a  stranger  unaccustomed  to  live  in  a 
smoky  atmosphere.  Two  tents  belonging  to  the  chief  and  his  family 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


AN    INDIAN    VILLAGE. 


stood  apart  from  the  others  and  near 
a  large  tree,  and  in  front  of  them  was 
a  squaw  with  a  baby  on  her  back,  after 
the  Indian  method. 

In  an  open  meadow  just  back  of 
the  village  a  herd  of  Indian  ponies  had 
been  turned  out  to  feed.  Some  of  the 
animals  were  in  fine  condition,  while  others  were  thin  in  flesh,  and  seemed 
to  have  just  arrived  from  a  long  march.  The  officer  gave  a  quick  glance 
at  them,  and  said  the  Indians  had  recently  come  in  from  a  buffalo-hunt, 
and  their  ponies  showed  signs  of  rough  usage.  They  would  be  likely 
to  remain  for  a  week  or  two  where  they  were,  to  give  the  animals  a 
chance  to  recuperate. 

Indian  ponies  have  a  hard  life  to  lead.  They  are  badly  fed  and  badly 
treated,  and  it  is  proverbial  that  the  red  men  are  the  worst  masters  in  the 
world  in  their  treatment  of  horse-flesh.  When  on  the  march  or  in  the 


PECULIARITIES   OF   INDIAN   LIFE. 


193 


hunt,  they  frequently  ride  their  animals  to  death,  and  if  a  pony  gives  out 
his  owner  deserts  him  without  the  slightest  compunction.  In  winter  the 
ponies  get  very  thin,  and  are  quite  useless  so  far  as  any  service  is  con- 
cerned ;  in  summer  they  grow  fat,  and  by  the  time  the  autumn  hunts 
begin  they  are  in  fine  condition.  Then  the  Indians  go  out  on  their  chase 
after  the  buffalo,  and  by  the  time  it  is  over  the  animals  have  lost  most 
of  their  vigor.  In  midsummer  the}7  go  occasionally  on  desultory  hunts, 
but  the  grand  chase  of  the  season  is  in  the  autumn. 


INDIAN    1'ONY    IN    SI'UINU. 


The  wagon-train  did  not  stop  at  all  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  vil- 
lage, and  consequently  the  visit  our  friends  made  to  the  lodges  of  the 
noble  red  men  was  very  brief.  They  rode  back  to  the  train,  and,  as  the 
boys  had  had  an  exciting  hour  of  it,  they  were  quite  willing  to  take  their 
places  in  the  wagon  for  a  short  rest. 

They  were  reclining  in  their  seats,  discussing  what  they  had  seen, 
when  they  heard  the  Doctor's  voice  calling  to  them.  Putting  their  heads 
from  under  the  canvas  cover,  they  had  what  Harry  denominated  a  "mov- 
ing spectacle."  It  was  an  Indian  village  on  the  move,  and  in  their  young 
eyes  the  picture  was  full  of  novelty. 

13 


194: 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


It  was  evidently  a  village  of  no  small  importance,  as  the  procession 
was  a  long  one,  and  extended  over  the  hills  as  far  as  the  boys  could  see. 
In  changing  their  residences,  the  Indians  put  the  coverings  of  their  lodges 
into  bundles,  and  enclose  with  them  the  few  spare  garments  and  other 
property  they  may  possess.  The  poles  that  make  the  framework  of  the 
tent  are  fastened  to  the  ponies  in  much  the  same  position  that  the  shafts 
of  a  carriage  are  attached  to  a  civilized  horse ;  the  bundles  are  then  piled 
on  the  lower  extremities  of  the  poles,  and  in  this  way  they  are  securely 
and  easily  carried.  Babies  and  sick  people  are  transported  in  the  same 
way;  and  sometimes  a  basketful  of  dogs  may  be  seen  riding  very  com- 
fortably on  this  wagon  without  wheels.  The  squaws  ride  on  the  backs 
of  the  ponies  or  walk  by  their  sides,  and  the  "  bucks,"  or  men,  are  mount- 
ed on  .their  own  hunting-steeds,  and  pay  no  attention  to  the  rest  of  the 
party  further  than  to  keep  near  them. 

The  Indian  men  do  none  of  the  work  about  the  village,  but  leave 
everything  for  the  women.  When  a  village  is  to  move,  the  chief  gives 


AX    INDIAN    VILLAGE    MOVING. 


the  order,  and  the  men  either  lie  around  doing  nothing,  or  mount  their 
horses  and  ride  on  ahead.     The  lodges  are  struck,  and  the  ponies  harness- 


DEGRADED   POSITION  OF   INDIAN   WOMEN. 


195 


ed  and  burdened  by  the  women,  and  when  the  destination  is  reached  the 
women  set  the  tents  up  again.  A  noble  Indian  scorns  to  do  any  work, 
and  looks  upon  his  wife  or  wives  as  destined  by  nature  for  all  the  drudg- 
ery. There  is  no  more  degraded  being  in  the  world  than  an  Indian 
woman,  and  it  is  a  great  compliment  to  her  patience  that  she  performs 
without  complaint  the  tasks  that  her  cruel  master  sets  for  her.  She  is 


,   n 


PREPARING    BUFFALO-UOBES. 


kicked  and  beaten  and  abused  in  every  possible  way,  and  one  of  the  fa- 
vorite amusements  of  the  Indian  is  to  set  the  squaws  to  fighting,  and  flog 
them  if  they  do  not  tear  each  other's  faces  and  hair  with  sufficient  vigor; 
and  yet  few  of  these  women  will  give  up  their  wild  life  and  accept. the 
comforts  of  a  civilized  existence. 

When  the  buffalo-hunts  are  over,  the  women  are  set  to  work  cleaning 
the  hides  of  the  slaughtered  animals,  and  making  them  ready  for  market 
or  for  the  coverings  of  lodges.  It  takes  from  ten  to  twelve  hides  to  cover 
a  lodge,  and  the  hair  must  be  scraped  off,  and  the  skin  rubbed  with  a  stone 
fastened  in  a  stick  till  it  is  soft  and  pliable.  When  the  hunt  is  successful, 
the  squaws  are  engaged  for  weeks  in  the  preparation  of  the  robes,  and  the 


196 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


wealth  of  an  Indian  is  generally  estimated  in  robes  rather  than  in  any 
other  kind  of  currency . 

The  train  halted  for  a  short  rest  at  noon,  and  when  it  moved  on,  the 
boys  mounted  their  horses  and  rode  with  the  officers  and  others  at  the 
head  of  the  column.  In  a  little  while  they  came  in  sight  of  a  scaffold  on 
poles,  and  supporting  a  bundle  wrapped  in  a  buffalo-robe.  Harry  was  the 
first  to  see  it,  and  he  naturally  inquired  what  it  was. 

"  That's  an  Indian  grave,"  said  the  Doctor. 

"An  Indian  grave!"  Harry  exclaimed,  in  astonishment. 

"Yes,  an  Indian  grave,"  was  the  reply.  "  This  is  the  way  the  Indians 
dispose  of  their  dead.  They  erect  a  scaffold,  and  place  the  body  upon  it, 
wrapped  in  a  robe  that  was  once  the  property  of  the  deceased.  In  addi- 
tion to  this,  they  leave  sufficient  food,  clothing,  arms,  ammunition,  and 
other  things  to  give  him  a  proper  equipment  for  the  happy  hunting- 
grounds  where  he  is  expected  to  go,  and  sometimes  the  property  found  in 
an  Indian  grave  is  of  considerable  value.  The  Indians  complain  that  the 
whites  desecrate  their  burial-places  by  carrying  away  everything  that  has 
been  left  for  the  benefit  of  the  dead  men,  and  certainly  they  have  good 


AN    INDIAN    GKAVE. 


reason  for  complaint.  Where  there  are  groves  of  trees,  the  bodies  are 
placed  among  the  branches  sufficiently  far  from  the  ground  to  be  out  of 
reach  of  wolves.  The  whites  cut  down  the  trees  for  fuel,  and  thus  de- 
stroy the  burial-places  and  scatter  the  bones  on  the  ground.  It  is  not  at 
all  surprising  that  the  Indians  should  make  war  on  the  men  who  thus  in- 
terfere with  their  customs  and  traditions,  and  a  good  many  men  have  lost 
their  lives  in  consequence." 


AMONG    THE    RATTLESNAKES. 


197 


In  contrast  to  the  Indian  grave  there  was  another,  a  few  miles  farther 
on,  containing  the  remains  of  a  white  man.  There  was  no  name  upon 
the  board  at  the  head.  The  words,  "  Unknown,  killed  by  Indians,"  had 
been  scratched  upon  it  by  some 


UNKNOWN. 


kindly  hand,  and  there  was  noth- 
ing to  tell  when  or  how  the  oc- 
cupant of  the  lonely  burial  -  place 
met  his  death.  Hundreds  of  such 
graves  are  scattered  over  the  plains 
and  through  the  mountain  regions 
of  the  Far  West,  and  the  path  of 
civilization  has  been  in  too  many 
instances  the  march  of  death. 

The  camp  was  formed  late  in 
the  afternoon,  in  a  small  grove  of 
trees  on  the  bank  of  a  little  creek. 
Hardly  were  the  tents  pitched  be- 
fore it  was  discovered  that  they 
had  fallen  upon  an  inhabited  spot, 

and  the  rightful  occupants  wTere  inclined  to  resent  the  intrusion.  They 
were  neither  human  nor  quadruped,  but  belonged  to  the  race  of  creeping 
things,  and  their  names  were  "  rattlesnakes." 

The  men  of  the  party  set  to  work  to  slaughter  every  snake  that  show- 
ed itself.  The  sport  was  not  as  dangerous  as  might  appear  at  first  glance, 
as  everybody  was  equipped  with  boots  reaching  to  the  knee.  The  snake 
cannot  strike  much  more  than  a  foot  above  the  ground,  and  so  their  en- 
emies were  in  no  danger  as  long  as  they  stood  erect.  One  of  the  offi- 
cers was  an  expert  swordsman,  and  amused  himself  by  slicing  off  the 
heads  of  the  rattlers  as  they  rose  up  to  strike.  No  record  of  the  slaugh- 
ter was  kept,  and  the  boys  were  quite  content  to  look  on  from  a  distance 
and  let  the  others  have  all  the  fun.  One  of  the  cooks  prepared  a  dish 
that  he  designated  as  "prairie  eels;"  but  it  did  not  meet  with  much  favor 
among  the  gentlemen,  and  as  for  the  boys,  they  avowed  a  decided  prefer- 
ence for  fried  bacon.  The  camp  was  afterward  known  as  "Rattlesnake 
Village ;"  and  the  Doctor  told  the  boys  that  the  rattlesnake  abounds  all 
over  the  Western  plains,  and  is  frequently  found  congregated  in  large 
numbers. 

Scouts  had  been  sent  out  in  advance  to  find  where  the  buffalo  herds 
were  feeding.  They  came  in  during  the  evening  and  reported  small 
groups  of  buffaloes  about  twenty  miles  away,  and  large  herds  somewhat 


198 


THE    YOUNG  NIMBODS. 


farther  to  the  south.  It  was  decided  that  the  march  should  be  kept  up 
till  the  large  herds  were  reached,  as  the  scattered  groups  were  very  shy 
and  difficult  of  approach,  and,  besides,  they  were  so  few  that  they  could 
not  be  chased  to  advantage. 

The  march  was  resumed  early  in  the  morning,  and  a  little  while  after 
leaving  camp  the  boys  made  a  new  discovery,  and  one  far  more  pleasing 
than  the  finding  of  the  rattlesnakes.  They  came  upon  a  "dog-town,"  as 
it  is  called  in  the  language  of  the  plains.  Far  as  they  could  see,  the  coun- 
try was  inhabited,  and  very  densely  too. 


RATTLESNAKE    VILLAGE. 


The  town  consisted  of  numberless  little  hillocks  or  mounds,  and  on 
nearly  every  mound  there  was  an  animal  of  nearly  the  proportions  of  a 
medium-sized  cat.  He  was  a  short,  chubby  little  fellow,  and  he  sat  bolt- 
upright  like  a  squirrel ;  he  made  a  sound  like  the  barking  of  a  small  dog, 
and  from  this  circumstance  the  early  explorers  of  the  plains  called  him 
the  "  prairie-dog,"  and  he  has  been  so  designated  ever  since. 

When  the  boys  approached  the  village  they  were  greeted  with  the 
barking  above  described,  and  then  the  owner  of  the  voice  threw  his  heels 
in  the  air  and  disappeared  in  his  den.  The  boys  were  greatly  amused 


VISITING   A   DOG -TOWN. 


199 


at  the  comical  way  in  which  the  little  fellows  turned  somersaults  as  they 
went  below,  and  they  were  further  interested  to  learn  that  the  prairie-dog 


A    1'KAIRIK-DOG    TOWN. 


has  the  power  of  throwing  himself  into  his  hole  so  quickly  that  he  is  very 
hard  to  shoot. 

"  I  have  fired  at  them,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  when  I  was  not  more  than 
ten  yards  away,  but  I  could  see  no  indications  that  I  had  harmed  them. 
As  my  gun  flashed  they  went  down,  and  that  was  the  last  I  saw ;  and 
even  when  mortally  wounded  they  will  throw  themselves  inside  their 
retreats.  I  have  shot  at  them,  and  found  their  brains  scattered  over  the 
top  of  the  mound,  but  the  game  was  in  the  ground,  and  out  of  my  reach." 

George  wished  to  know  what  the  little  animal  was.  Did  he  belong 
to  the  dog  family,  or  \vas  he  so  called  erroneously  on  account  of  his 
bark  ? 

"  As  to  that,"  the  Doctor  answered,  "  he  is  no  dog  at  all ;  he  is  a  ro- 
dent, and  occupies  a  middle  position  between  the  marmot  and  the  prairie- 
squirrel.  His  scientific  name  is  Cynomus  ludovicianus,  and  he  has  a  body 
about  thirteen  inches  long,  to  which  we  may  add  four  inches  for  the  tail, 
lie  lives  entirely  on  vegetable  food,  and,  as  the  dog-towns  are  often  far 
from  water,  it  is  generally  believed  that  he  does  not  need  that  liquid  or 
any  other  to  keep  him  alive.  Sometimes  the  dog-towns  extend  continu- 
ously for  many  miles,  and  they  are  dangerous  to  buffalo-hunters,  as  horses 


200 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


running  rapidly  among  them  are  in  danger  of  being  thrown  by  getting 
their  feet  in  the  holes." 

Harry  asked  if  the  flesh  of  the  animal  was  good  to  eat. 

"Certainly  it  is,"  the  Doctor  answered  ;  "it  is  rich,  tender,  and  juicy, 
and  you  must  look  far  to  find  anything  more  delicious.  Many  persons 
refuse  to  eat  it  on  account  of  its  canine  appellation,  but  I  have  no  such 
prejudice,  and  if  we  can  capture  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  a  dog-town  I 
hope  to  prove  to  you  what  a  fine  article  of  food  is  rejected  by  so  many 
on  account  of  its  name." 


CAMP    SCENK    AT    NIGHT. 


FLOODS  ON   THE  PLAINS.  201 


Oil  AFTER     XVI. 
INCIDENTS  OF  THE   MARCH.— ARRIVAL  AT  THE    HUNTING-GROUNDS. 

TVHERE  was  nothing  of  special  interest  in  the  day's  journey.  The 
country  they  traversed  was  an  undulating  region,  broken  here  and 
there  by  gullies  and  water-courses.  The  latter  seemed  to  be  misnamed, 
as  few  of  them  contained  any  water;  but  there  was  abundant  evidence 
that  torrents  flowed  through  them  in  the  rainy  season.  The  Doctor  told 
the  boys  that  the  rise  of  the  streams  in  this  part  of  the  country  was  often 
as  sudden  as  the  approach  of  a  tornado,  and  as  destructive  in  its  effects. 
"  It  is  the  rule  of  all  plainsmen,"  said  he,  "  never  to  camp  on  the  bank  of 
a  stream,  and  leave  it  to  be  crossed  in  the  morning.  It  may  be  a  little 
thread  of  water  at  sunset,  and  a  roaring  torrent  at  sunrise  the  next  day, 
and,  by  neglecting  to  make  their  crossing  before  camping,  many  verdant 
travellers  have  lost  days  in  waiting  for  a  stream  to  become  passable. 
Sometimes  a  flood  comes  so  suddenly  that  persons  are  caught  in  the  bed 
of  a  stream  and  drowned. 

"  Denver  City,"  he  continued,  "  is  at  the  junction  of  the  South  Platte 
River  and  Cherry  Creek.  The  latter  is  dry  for  more  than  three-fourths 
of  the  time,  and  there  have  been  entire  years  when  not  a  drop  of  water 
was  seen  in  it.  Some  of  the  early  settlers  built  their  houses  on  the  dry 
bed  of  the  creek,  and  the  first  newspaper  of  Colorado,  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tain News,  had  its  office  there.  The  old  trappers,  who  knew  the  habits 
of  the  stream,  predicted  that  these  buildings  would  be  swept  away  some 
day ;  but  for  more  than  a  year  there  was  no  indication  of  a  flood,  aiid  the 
trappers  were  regarded  as  false  prophets. 

But  once  in  the  middle  of  the  night  there  came  a  rushing  sound  as  of 
a  great  river,  and  following  the  sound  a  huge  wall  of  water  came  pouring 
down  the  valley.  The  occupants  of  the  buildings  managed  to  escape  with 
their  lives  and  a  little  clothing,  but  the  houses  went  down  as  though  con- 
structed of  snow.  Very  little  was  saved  from  the  newspaper  office.  One 
of  the  printing-presses  was  carried  three  or  four  miles  down  the  Platte 
River,  and  another,  the  largest  and  heaviest  in  the  establishment,  was 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


never  'found.  In  twelve  hours  after  the  coining  of  the  flood,  the  bed  of 
the  creek  was  as  dry  as  before,  but  no  one  ventured  to  build  there  again. 
A  water-spout  had  burst  among  the  hills  where  Cherry  Creek  takes  its 


EFFECTS    OF    A  SUDDEN  .FLOOD. 


rise,  and  filled  the  valley  to  its  entire  width.  Similar  phenomena  are  ob- 
served on  other  streams  on  the  plains,  and  the  men  who  are  familiar  with 
them  are  accustomed  to  treat  the  tiny  creeks  with  the  greatest  respect. 

Indications  of  their  approach  to  the  buffalo  country  began  to  be  appar- 
ent. Occasionally  the  skull  of  a  buffalo,  bleached  by  the  sun  and  rain,  lay 
on  the  ground,  and  when  they  went  into  camp  at  night,  the  boys  heard 
the  order  given  to  gather  some  buffalo-chips  for  making  a  fire.  Their 
curiosity  was  roused,  and  one  of  them  asked  what  buffalo-chips  were. 


COOKING  A  SUPPER.  .  20;j 

"  They  are  the  dried  excrement  of  the  buffalo,"  the  Doctor  answered, 
"and  they  make  excellent  fuel.  *They  are  abundant  on  the  feeding- 
grounds  of  the  animals  we  are  seeking,  and,  after  lying  a  year  in  the  sun, 
they  burn  like  the  best  of  peat." 

As  they  formed  the  camp,  one  of  the  men  started  out  with  a  sack,  and 
in  a  little  while  returned  with  a  bushel  or  more  of  the  articles  in  question. 
The  boys  watched  the  building  of  the  fire,  and  realized  the  correctness  of 
the  Doctor's  statement.  The  new  fuel  burnt  into  a  bright  coal  with  very 
little  smoke,  and  by  passing  their  hands  above  it  they  realized  that  there 
was  all  the  heat  needed  for  the  ordinary  purposes  of  cooking.  There  was 
not  the  least  disagreeable  smell  arising  from  the  fire,  and  altogether  the 
chips  appeared  preferable  to  wood  for  the  uses  of  prairie  travellers. 


GATHERING    DUFFALO-CHII'S. 


When  supper  was  ready,  the  party  broke  up  into  groups  of  four  or 
five,  and  the  meal  was  eaten  in  the  open  air,  with  no  table-cloths,  and  not 
even  a  table  to  place  them  on.  As  a  precaution,  the  guns  were  brought 
out  and  kept  in  readiness,  as  the  scouts  reported  Indians  in  the  vicinity, 
and  there  was  no  knowing  when  a  rush  might  be  made  upon  them.  The 
animals  had  been  turned  out  to  graze,  and  a  watch  was  set  over  them  to 
prevent  a  stampede. 


204- 


THE   YOUNG  N1MRODS. 


The  latter  word  was  new  to  the  boys.     The  Doctor  saw  the  look  of 
inquiry  on  their  faces,  and  explained  what  a  stampede  was. 

"There  is  a  great  deal  of  humanity  about  the  horse,"  said  the  Doctor, 


A    SUXSliT    SUPPER. 


"and  particularly  in  the  matter  of  taking  fright.  The  Indians  take  ad- 
vantage of  this  failing,  and  have  invented  a  way  of  robbing  emigrants  of 
their  horses  and  other  stock  that  has  been  turned  out  to  graze.  Horse- 
stealing  is  looked  upon  by  the  Indians  as  a  perfectly  honorable  occupation, 
and  the  best  man  in  a  tribe  is  the  one  who  has  stolen  more  horses  than 
anybody  else.  Nearly  every  man  of  long  experience  in  travel  on  the 
plains  lias  had  his  horses  and  mules  stolen  at  some  time  or  other,  and 
when  his  means  of  transport  are  gone  he  considers  himself  fortunate  not 
to  be  further  molested. 

"  To  show  you  what  a  stampede  is,  I  will  take  a  leaf  out  of  my  own 
experience. 

"  Some  years  ago,  I  was  out  with  a  small  party  on  the  head  waters  of 
the  Republican  River.  We  did  not  know  there  were  any  Indians  in  the 
vicinity,  and  when  we  put  out  our  animals  after  unharnessing,  we  were 
not  as  watchful  as  we  should  have  been. 

"One  evening,  while  we  were  getting  supper,  we  suddenly  heard  a 


STAMPEDING   MULES   AND   HORSES. 


205 


shout  as  though  all  the  Indians  in  the  country  were  upon  us.  We  looked 
up,  arid  ran  for  our  guns,  but  were  too  late. 

"  Three  or  four  Indians  were  riding  through  our  herd,  yelling  at  the 
top  of  their  voices,  and  waving  strips  of  cloth  in  the  air.  Each  of  them 
carried  a  lance,  and  every  lance-head  had  a  red  strip  fluttering  from  it, 
which  added  to  the  picturesqueness  of  the  performance. 

"  This  was  a  regular  stampede.  It  was  over  in  a  few  minutes,  and 
left  us  without  a  single  horse  or  mule  to  help  ourselves  with.  Our  whole 
herd  had  taken  fright,  and  joined  the  fleeing  Indians,  and  when  we  last 
saw  them  the  Indian  horses  and  ours  were  scampering  away  together. 

"A  remarkable  thing  about  a  stampede  is  the  effect  on  the  tired  and 
worn-out  horses.  A  weary,  spavined  animal,  out  of  which  you  can  hardly 


THE    STAMPEDE. 


get  more  than  three  miles  an  hour  on  the  road,  and  who  can  barely  stand 
when  turned  out  to  graze,  will  be  as  active  as  any  other  when  stampeded, 
lie  throws  his  head  in  the  air,  and  can  keep  up  with  the  best  of  his  com- 
panions, and  sometimes  he  gets  a  little  ahead.  I  have  known  a  horse  so 
old  and  worn  as  to  be  dear  at  five  dollars  who  could  take  the  lead  in  a 
stampede,  and  make  a  spectator  believe  he  was  the  pride  of  a  circus/' 


206 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


Supper  was  over  before  dark,  and  then  the  tire  was  carefully  extin- 
guished. Captain  Bailey,  who  commanded  the  party,  ordered  the  guards 
to  be  specially  watchful  over  the  animals,  and,  as  a  matter  of  precaution, 
they  were  driven  up  and  picketed  close  to  the  camp.  A  long  rope,  called, 
in  the  parlance  of  the  plains,  a  lariat,  was  attached  to  the  neck  or  forefoot 


of  each  horse  or  mule ;  the  other  end  was  fastened  to  an  iron  spike,  or  pin, 
and  when  this  pin  was  driven  into  the  ground  so  as  to  bury  it  to  the  head, 
it  was  next  to  impossible  for  the  animal  to  break  loose,  or  pull  the  pin 
from  the  solid  earth. 

Captain  Bailey  told  the  boys  it  was  never  a  good  plan  to  have  a  fire 
burning  when  Indians  might  be  around.  A  fire  showed  them  where  the 
whites  were  camped,  and  it  often  happened  that  a  man  who  exposed  him- 
self suddenly  to  the  light  would  receive  a  bullet  or  an  arrow  as  a  reward 
for  his  indiscretion  ;  and,  besides,  the  fire  dazzles  the  eyes  of  the  man  who 
is  near  it,  and  obscures  objects  that  otherwise  he  might  easily  perceive. 

The  guard  was  arranged  so  that  there  should  be  two  men  on  duty  for 
a  couple  of  hours,  and  then  they  were  relieved  by  two  others.  The  watch 
was  continued  in  this  way  through  the  night,  so  that  everybody  had  a  fair 


FKIENDS  OF   THE   WHITE   MAN.  207 

chance  for  sleeping.  Very  early  in  the  evening  the  camp  was  quiet,  and 
the  boys  .were  just  dropping  to  dream-land,  when  a  howl  saluted  their  ears 
that  made  them  wide  awake  in  an  instant. 

"What's  that?"  Harry  asked,  with  his  eyes  as  large  as  tea-saucers. 

"I'm  sure  I  can't  tell,"  replied  George.  Then  he  paused, and  listened 
again  to  the  howling,  and  after  satisfying  himself  that  it  was  an  animal 
of  some  kind,  he  settled  back  to  his  couch  with  the  remark, 

"Perhaps  it's  the  wolves;  anyway  it  can't  be  dangerous  to  us,  as  no- 
body else  seems  disturbed  by  it." 

Harry  thought  this  was  a  sensible  conclusion,  and  followed  George's 
example. 

In  the  morning  they  learned  that  the  noise  they  had  heard  was  the 
howling  of  the  coyotes,  or  prairie- wolves ;  and,  somewhat,  to  their  sur- 
prise, they  learned  that  the  howling  was  a  welcome  sound  to  the  plains- 
men in  camp  at  night,  as  it  was  a  sure  sign  that  no  Indians  were  in  the 
neighborhood.  "As  long  as  we  hear  the  coyotes,"  said  Captain  Bailey, 
"  we  know  there  are  no  Indians  sneaking  about,  and  if  the  howling  stops 
suddenly  we  smell  danger  at  once.  The  coyotes  are  our  friends,  and  their 
noise  is  music  to  our  ears." 

"  They  are  great  scavengers,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  and  make  short  work 
of  a  dead  horse  or  buffalo.  They  follow  the  herds  of  buffaloes,  and  pick 
off  those  that  are  wounded  or  otherwise  disabled,  but  they  rarely  attack 
a  buffalo  in  his  full  strength,  as  they  are  apt  to  get  the  worst  of  an  en- 
counter. 

"  They  come  around  camps,  hoping  to  pick  up  something  when  we 
move  off,  and  in  the  late  hours  of  the  night  they  sneak  inside  and  steal 
anything  edible  they  can  lay  hold  of.  I  have  known  them  to  pull  a  boot 
from  under  the  head  of  a  sleeping  man,  and  carry  it  off  for  the  sake  of 
the  grease  upon  it,  and  they  once  waked  me  by  gnawing  at  the  leather  of 
rny  saddle.  The  least  movement  sends  them  scampering  away,  and  the 
danger  of  their  attacking  an  individual  is  almost  nothing.  After  this, 
when  you  hear  the  coyotes  howling,  you  may  consider  them  as  friendly 
sentinels  who  will  warn  us  very  promptly  of  the  approach  of  thieving 
Indians." 

An  amusing  incident  occurred  during  the  morning,  and  there  was  a 
hearty  laugh  all  round  at  the  hero  of  it.  A  negro  servant  of  one  of  the 
officers  was  sent  to  the  creek  to  water  a  horse  belonging  to  his  master. 
While  the  horse  Mras  taking  his  fill  of  water,  the  man  saw  what  he  sup- 
posed to  be  an  Indian  under  a  bush  a  dozen  yards  away. 

Without  stopping  to  investigate,  he  came  dashing  back  to  camp,  and 


208 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


yelled  "Injuns!  Injuns!"  at  the  top  of  his  voice.     He  did  not  draw  rein 
till  he  reached  the  centre  of  the  tents  and  wagons,  and  then  his  jface  was 


BADLY    SCARED. 


as  white  as  was  possible  for  a  negro's  face  to  be.  Of  course  every  one 
was  on  the  alert ;  the  scared  darkey  was  questioned  as  to  the  cause  of  his 
alarm,  and  it  took  several  minutes  to  extract  the  facts  from  him. 

Three  or  four  of  the  party  started  in  the  direction  where  the  Indians 
were  reported.  As  they  neared  the  creek  a  coyote  was  perceived  leisure- 
ly surveying  the  scene,  and  doubtless  wondering  what  had  so  startled  the 
negro,  and  sent  him  flying  to  the  camp.  The  wolf  had  been  mistaken  for 
an  Indian.  The  frightened  negro  was  not  the  first  traveller  over  the 
plains  who  has  fallen  into  this  error. 

The  performance  of  the  servant  led  to  a  story  of  the  fright  of  an 
officer  who  had  freshly  arrived  on  the  plains  several  years  ago,  and  was 
roused  one  night  by  an  alarm  of  Indians.  His  horse  had  been  picketed 
among  some  trees  close  to  the  camp,  and  the  owner  rushed  for  his  faith- 
ful steed,  and  mounted  at  once  without  waiting  for  saddle  or  bridle.  The 
lariat  was  fastened  to  the  animal's  foot,  but  the  rider  forgot  all  about  it, 


SCARED   BY   INDIANS. 


209 


and  manifested  liis  eagerness  to  go  on  by  thrusting  his  spurs  into  the 
horse's  sides  to  their  full  depth. 

The  horse  thus  urged  bounded  forward.  When  he  reached  the  end 
of  his  tether  he  was  brought  up  all  standing,  as  a  sailor  would  say,  which 
means  all  falling.  They  went  in  opposite  directions,  the  man  plunging 
forward  as  though  taking  a  dive  in  the  water,  and  the  horse  throwing  his 
heels  wildly  in  the  air.  In  falling,  he  came  in  front  of  a  black  stump 
and  mistook  it  for  the  Indian  that  had  knocked  him  down.  lie  saw 
there  was  no  chance  of  escape,  and  immediately  fell  on  his  knees  and 


UNCONDITIONAL    SUKKKNUEK. 


offered  to  surrender.  The  supposed  Indian  did  not  move,  and  as  the  offi- 
cer finally  gathered  his  wits  together,  he  realized  his  mistake,  unfastened 
his  lariat,  and  soothed  the  excited  horse  till  the  scare  was  over. 

14 


210 


THE  YOUNG  NIMUODS. 
•BBB 


A   1>UG-OUT   ON    THE    PLAINS. 


The  march  was  resumed  at  the  usual  hour,  and  the  order  was  issued 
for  the  party  to  keep  well  together,  and  not  to  stray  from  the  line  of 
travel  without  permission.  Captain  Bailey  was  unwilling  to  have  the 
hunting  begin  till  they  were  well  among  the  buffaloes,  and,  besides,  some 
of  the  stragglers  might  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  who  were  sup- 
posed to  be  close  on  the  trail  of  the  buffaloes. 

In  the  afternoon  a  few  buffaloes  were  seen,  but  they  were  very  shy, 
and  fled  long  before  the  party  came  within  rifle  range.  The  march  was 
kept  up  till  sunset,  as  it  was  desirable  to  reach  a  certain  creek,  where  the 
camp  would  be  kept  for  several  days  if  the  herds  remained  in  the  vicinity. 
By  the  time  the  tents  were  pitched  it  was  quite  dark,  and  supper  was 
taken  under  various  disadvantages.  George  and  Harry  offered  to  take 
their  share  of  standing  guard  over  the  animals,  and  the  former  was  as- 
signed to  the  first  watch,  while  the  latter  went  to  the  second. 

There  were  various  things  to  indicate  that  they  were  not  the  first  vis- 
itors to  that  locality.  Traces  of  previous  camps  were  visible,  and  in  the 
little  bluff  overhanging  the  valley  of  the  creek  there  was  a  ruined  and 
abandoned  dug-out.  The  Doctor  explained  to  the  boys  the  character  of 
this  peculiar  structure,  which  is  the  favorite  abode  of  those  who  pass  the 
winter  on  the  plains. 

It  is  nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  cave  in  a  steep  bank,  with  an  open- 
ing for  a  chimney.  It  is  an  excellent  contrivance  for  shunning  the  cold, 
and  it  makes  a  very  good  defence  against  Indians.  A  few  men  club 
together  to  construct  it,  and  whenever  danger  is  apprehended  they  take 
turns  in  mounting  guard  above  the  door.  A  fire  in  the  interior  drives 


A   BUSY  MORNING.  211 

away  the  most  of  the  dampness ;  and  as  the  plainsmen  are  a  hardy  race, 
they  generally  come  out  in  the  spring  in  a  good  state  of  health. 

The  coyotes  howled  musically  through  the  night,  and  gave  a  sense  of 
security  to  all  in  the  camp.  In  the  morning  there  were  active  prepara- 
tions for  a  hunt,  as  the  buffaloes  were  said  to  be  in  large  numbers  only  a 
few  miles  away.  Rifles  and  pistols  were  carefully  examined  and  loaded, 
ammunition  was  made"  ready  to  be  handled  with  great  rapidity,  the  sad- 
dles and  their  belongings  were  critically  examined,  and  a  dozen  other  de- 
tails of  a  buffalo-hunt  received  the  minute  attentions  that  old  sportsmen 
on  the  plains  thoroughly  understand.  The  boys  looked  on  with  great 
interest,  and  allowed  few  things  to  escape  their  observation. 


READY   FOR   THE   HUNT. 


212 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

A  DAY  OF  BUFFALO-HUNTING. 

ONE  of  the  scouts  announced  that  there  was  a  group  of  a  dozen  or 
more  buffaloes  on  the  bank  of  the  creek  about  half  a  mile  below 
the  camp,  and  that  a  larger  herd  was  visible  some  distance  farther  on. 
As  there  was  an  hour  or  more  to  spare  before  the  general  hunt  would 
begin,  Captain  Bailey  gave  permission  for  the  boys  to  go  out  with  the 
Doctor  and  see  what  they  could  accomplish.  They  were  off  in  a  few 
moments,  and  by  following  the  inequalities  of  the  ground  they  succeeded 
in  getting  quite  close  to  the  group.  Each  of  the  trio  carried  a  rifle,  and 
it  was  arranged  that  the  boys  were  to  reserve  their  fire  till  the  Doctor 
gave  the  word. 

The  buffaloes  proved  to  be  some  old  bulls  that  had  been  driven  out 
of  the  main  herd  by  the  younger  ones.  It  is  a  habit  of  the  youngsters 
to  drive  out  the  veterans  when  the}7  become  unable  to  defend  themselves 


'  ^~ 


by  fighting.  The  exiles  generally 
unite  for  protection  against  the 
wolves,  and  thus  it  happens  that 
several  of  them  are  found  in  com- 
pany, as  on  this  occasion.  The 
wolves  follow  on  the  skirts  of  a 

herd  in  search  of  these  waifs  and  strays,  and  evidently  look  on  them  as 

the  provision  of  nature  for  their  support. 


THEIR    FIttST    BUFFALO-HUNT. 


THE   FIRST   SHOT   AT  A  BUFFALO. 


213 


The  two  foremost  bulls  of  the  group  were  selected  by  the  Doctor  as 
the  recipients  of  their  fire :  he  would  try  to  bring  down  the  nearest  of 
them,  while  the  boys  could  use  their  rifles  on  the  second.  He  fired,  and 
his  buffalo  fell  with  a  shot  through  his  shoulder;  the  boys  discharged 


BUFFALO    CO\V    AM)    CALF. 


their  rifles  so  nearly  together  that  only  one  report  was  heard.  The  buf- 
falo that  was  favored  with  their  attentions  staggered  for  a  moment,  gaz- 
ing in  the  direction  of  his  assailants,  and  then  fell  to  the  ground.  The 
others  scampered  away  toward  the  main  herd,  and  left  our  friends  to  pick 
up  their  game.  The  tongue  of  each  buffalo  was  cut  out  and  taken  back 
to  camp.  The  Doctor  explained  that  the  tongue  was  the  only  edible 
part  of  an  old  bull,  with  the  possible  exception  of  the  tenderloin.  The 
hides  were  of  no  use,  as  nearly  all  the  hair  was  worn  away,  and  the  little 
that  remained  was  coarse  and  of  poor  color. 

During  their  return  to  camp  the  Doctor  gave  the  boys  some  informa- 
tion concerning  the  buffalo  and  its  peculiarities,  which  was  in  substance 
as  follows : 

"  The  name  of  buffalo  is  erroneous;  it  should  be  bison,  and  the  scien- 
tific appellation  for  the  animal  is  Bos  Americanus.  Since  he  is  popularly 
known  as  buffalo,  we  will  not  draw  too  fine  a  point  about  it,  but  continue 
to  do  as  others  are  doing.  It  is  believed  that  he  once  roamed  over  the 
whole  of  North  America,  from  Lake  Cham  plain  and  the  Hudson  River 


214: 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  but  it  is  many  years  since  a  buffalo  in  his  wild  state 
was  seen  east  of  the  Mississippi  River.  The  Missouri  is  now  considered 
the  eastern  limit  of  the  buffalo  country,  and  this  only  in  its  northern 
portion.  His  range  is  diminishing  every  year,  and,  at  the  rate  of  decrease 
now  going  on,  the  whole  race  of  buffaloes  promises  to  be  extinct  by  the 
end  of  this  century. 

"  The  buffalo  travels  northward  in  spring,  and  when  the  autumn  comes 
his  direction  of  travel  is  reversed.  He  is  a  gregarious  animal,  and  the 
herds  of  buffaloes  are  sometimes  of  enormous  extent;  it  is  impossible 
to  estimate  them  with  any  degree  of  accuracy.  I  have  seen  herds  that 
might  contain  a  million  buffaloes,  and  I  would  not  undertake  to  say  there 
were  less  than  two  millions.  Buffaloes  move  from  one  place  to  another 
in  search  of  food.  Their  favorite  sustenance  is  a  rich  and  soft  herbage 
known  to  plainsmen  as  '  buffalo-grass ;' it  grows  in  the  valleys  of  the 
streams,  and  is  very  nutritious.  Emigrants  find  it  excellent  for  their 
draught  and  saddle  animals,  and  as  long  as  they  can  find  it  in  abundance 
their  teams  are  in  good  condition. 

"  Before  they  were  disturbed  by  the  advance  of  civilization,  the  buf- 
faloes had  regular  routes  of  travel  that  they  followed  year  after  year. 
These  were  known  as  buffalo-trails,  and  it  has  been  said  that  the  lowest 
passes  through  the  hills,  and  the  shortest  routes  were  always  selected  by 
the  herds  in  their  migrations.  '  The  buffaloes  were  the  first  road-makers 
and  the  best,'  is  an  old  saying  among  plainsmen. 

"A  great  herd  on  the  move  is  a  dangerous  thing  to  encounter.  It  is 
always  led  by  the  most  powerful  of  the  bulls,  and  the  principle  of  '  follow 


BREAKING    THE    HERD. 


A  DANGEROUS  POSITION.  215 

my  leader '  seems  to  be  fully  carried  out  by  the  buffalo.  If  the  bulls  can 
be  divided,  the  herd  will  separate  and  move  on  like  a  river  flowing  around 
an  island ;  but  if  they  refuse  to  be  divided,  the  herd  rushes  over  the  ob- 
struction in  the  footsteps  of  its  leaders. 

"  Sometimes  wagon-trains  and  camping-parties  have  been  overrun  by 
them  and  destroyed,  or  the  men  were  forced  to  seek  safety  in  flight.  I 
was  once  with  a  wagon-train  that  was  only  saved  by  firing  into  the  herd 
as  the  leading  bulls  approached,  and  some  of  them  actually  got  among  the 
wagons  before  their  advance  was  checked.  The  herd  stretched  at  least 
half  a  mile  on  each  side  of  us,  and  it  was  nearly  nine  hours  in  passing. 
Their  tramp  was  like  the  roar  of  distant  thunder,  and  they  raised  clouds 
of  dust  from  the  dry  earth  that  at  times  almost  enveloped  them. 

"  A  friend  of  mine  once  found  himself  in  front  of  an  advancing  herd, 
and  while  he  was  trying  to  get  away  his  horse  caught  a  leg  in  a  dog-hole 
and  fell.  The  horse  was  so  badly  hurt  that  he  did  not  try  to  rise,  and 
perhaps  it  is  just  as  well  that  he  did  not.  My  friend  was  not  injured ; 
he  rose  by  the  side  of  his  fallen  horse,  and  fired  his  pistol  in  the  air  just 
as  the  foremost  bulls  were  within  ten  feet  of  him." 

"  Why  didn't  he  fire  at  them  instead  of  discharging  his  pistol  in  the 
air?"  one  of  the  boys  asked. 

"Because,"  was  the  reply,  "it  would  have  been  certain  death  to  do  so. 
The  buffalo  is  not  particularly  dangerous  when  he  is  let  alone,  but  if  he 
is  attacked  and  wounded  he  is  apt  to  turn  on  his  assailant.  If  my  friend 
had  fired  at  one  of  the  bulls  he  would  have  been  gored  and  trampled 
underfoot  in  a  moment,  and  the  herd  would  have  gone  on  straight  over 
where  he  lay.  When  he  fired  the  shot  the  bulls  showed  a  disposition  to 
open  a  way  for  him  ;  they  separated,  and  the  herd  followed  their  example. 
They  united  again  in  front  of  him,  and  he  stood  there  like  a  living  island 
in  a  living  river  for  several  hours.  Not  until  the  last  of  the  herd  had 
passed  did  he  consider  it  safe  to  move. 

"  The  buffalo  is  ordinarily  an  inoffensive  beast.  It  is  only  when  he  is 
pursued  or  disturbed  that  he  shows  an  inclination  to  fight,  and  even  then 
he  does  not  keep  it  up  for  a  long  time.  He  has  a  very  fierce  appearance, 
with  his  high  shoulders,  his  shaggy  mane,  and  his  great,  staring  eyes,  but 
he  is  less  savage  than  he  looks,  and  decidedly  in  favor  of  universal  peace. 

"  The  Indians  take  advantage  of  his  tendency  to  follow  a  leader,  and 
sometimes  inflict  great  slaughter  on  a  herd  in  consequence  of  it. 

"  When  they  find  a  herd  near  a  precipice  they  lay  their  plans  for  driv- 
ing the  unhappy  beasts  over  it.  They  surround  it  on  three  sides,  while 
on  the  fourth  there  are  several  Indians  disguised  in  buffalo-robes  so  as'  to 


216 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


DKIVING    BUFFALOES    OVER    A    CLIFF. 


resemble  the  animals  themselves. 
When  all  is  ready,  the  hunt  begins 
by  the  undisguised  Indians,  who 
make  a  great  noise,  and  frighten 
the  beasts  into  looking  round  for 
a  place  of  safety.  Just  then  the 
bogus  buffaloes  begin  running  to- 
ward the  cliff,  and  the  real  ones 
follow  heedlessly.  The  Indians 
cast  off  their  disguises,  and  scram- 
ble down  the  cliff  or  into  holes  pre- 
viously prepared.  The  buffaloes 

are  driven  over,  and  many  are  killed  by  the  fall,  or  despatched  by  the  In- 
dians while  limping  off.  White  men  rarely  indulge  in  this  form  of  hunt- 
ing, particularly  if  they  are  only  pursuing  the  buffaloes  for  the  sake  of 
sport.  The  slaughter  is  so  great,  and  the  hunters  are  so  entirely  fr.ee 
from  danger,  that  the  true  sportsman  would  scorn  such  a  method  of  tak- 
ing his  game." 

By  this  time  they  were  back  in  camp,  where  the  boys  were  congratu- 
lated on  the  success  of  their  first  buffalo-hunt.  It  was  announced  that 
the  hunting-party  would  start  in  a  few  minutes  to  chase  the  herd  that  had 
been  seen  down  the  valley,  and  the  Doctor  and  the  boys  would  accompany 
it.  Through  fear  of  accidents,  it  was  arranged  that  the  boys  should  not 
for  that  day  take  an  active  part  in  the  hunt.  They  were  to  be  on  horse- 
back like  the  rest,  and  the  Doctor  said  they  might  carry  their  pistols,  but 
they  were  not  to  do  more  with  them  than  protect  themselves  from  injury, 
or  take  a  "  pot-shot "  in  a  good  opportunity. 

"  You  had  better  see  how  it  is  done,"  said  the  Doctor,  "  before  you 
venture  on  hunting  on  your  own  hook  ;  and,  besides,  the  horses  you  have 
are  not  good  buffalo  runners  like  the  one  I  am  riding,  and  which  I  shall 


TRAINING   A  "BUFFALO-HOUSE.' 


217 


lend  to  you  alternately,  provided  another  cannot  be  procured.  Most 
horses  are  afraid  of  the  buffalo  when  they  first  see  him,  and  it  requires 
careful  training  to  fit  a  horse  for  the  business.  The  best  are  those  which 
have  been  brought  up  and  trained  by  the  Indians.  They  are  known  as 
buffalo-horses,  and  the  Indians  mark  them  with  a  small  slit  in  each  ear,  so 
that  they  may  be  readily  recognized.  A  first- rate  buffalo -horse  enters 
into  the  spirit  of  the  chase  quite  as  much  as  his  rider  does.  He  needs  no 
guidance  with  the  rein,  and  takes  his  place  instinctively  at  the  left  side  of 
a  buffalo,  and  a  little  behind  him.  This  gives  the  rider  a  chance  to  use 
his  weapon,  generally  the  revolver,  with  just  the  effect  he  desires,  and  the 
horse  is  guided  entirely  by  the  voice,  and  by  the  pressure  of  the  foot 
against  his  side. 

"  When  a  shot  has  been  delivered,  the  buffalo  frequently  turns  and  at- 
tempts to  return  the  compliment  with  the  best  weapons  he  has — his  horns. 
The  horse  understands  this,  and  when  he  hears  the  report  of  your  revolv- 
er he  is  on  the  alert  for  the  expected  charge,  and  takes  the  best  position 
he  can  to  avoid  it.  He  goes  to  one  side  very  quickly,  but  at  the  same 
time  with  such  a  motion  that  his  rider  is  in  no  danger  of  being  thrown 


THE    TUACK    OF    A    HUXT. 


unless  by  those  dreaded  dog-holes.  While  running  a  buffalo,  he  keeps 
about  ten  feet  from  the  side  of  the  beast,  and  thus  you  can  fill  your  game 
with  bullets  without  taking  accurate  aim,  or  really  any  aim  at  all." 

This  conversation,  or  rather  soliloquy,  occurred  while  the  horses  were 
being  saddled.     The  word  was  given,  and  all  who  were  to  join  in  the 


218 


THE    YOUNG  SIMRODS. 


THE    CAPTAIN    AND    HIS    BUFFALO. 


hunt  were  soon  astride  their  steeds.  Captain  Bailey  headed  the  party ; 
and  as  lie  had  the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the  best  hunters  on  the 
plains,  the  boys  determined  to  keep  as  near  him  as  possible,  in  order  to 
learn  all  the  points  of  successful  buffalo-chasing. 

A  little  distance  from  camp  the  party  halted  while  the  captain  "tossed 
the  feather ;"  that  is,  he  threw  a  feather  in  the  air  to  ascertain  how  the 
wind  was  blowing.  This  is  a  very  important  operation  in  buffalo-hunting, 
as  the  scent  of  the  animal  is  very  keen  ;  and  if  he  is  approached  from 
windward  he  takes  alarm,  and  is  off  long  before  his  pursuer  is  in  the 
range  of  the  best  rifle  ever  made.  A  herd  should  always  be  approached 
from  the  leeward ;  and  the  same  rule  is  observed  with  this  lord  of  the 
plains  as  with  the  moose,  the  deer,  and  other  game  animals  of  the  forest. 
The  wind  having  been  ascertained,  the  party  circled  round  to  get  the 
proper  position  and  approach  as  near  as  possible  without  being  perceived. 
The  configuration  of  the  ground  favored  them,  and  they  managed  to 
arrive  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  herd  before  the  latter  suspected 
any  danger.  Then  a  dash  was  made,  and  in  a  very  short  time  the  hunters 
were  in  the  midst  of  their  game. 


IN   THE   MIDST   OF   THE   HERD.  219 

Each  man  singled  out  a  buffalo,  and  went  after  him  to  the  best  of 
his  ability.  Captain  Bailey  selected  the  fattest  animal  he  could  find,  and 
giving  the  reins  to  his  powerful  hunter,  he  was  soon  in  the  position  he 
desired.  Away  they  went,  buffalo  and  horse,  and  the  chase  was  neck  and 
neck  for  nearly  half  a  mile.  The  captain  fired  three  bullets  into  the  side 
of  the  buffalo  before  bringing  him  to  earth,  and  as  soon  as  he  was  sure  of 
his  prey  he  started  for  another.  This  he  killed  with  a  single  shot,  and  in 
a  run  of  less  than  three  miles  the  captain  was  able  to  count  four  buffaloes 
as  the  result  of  his  morning's  work. 

The  majority  of  the  best  hunters  prefer  the  old-fashioned  army  re- 
volver, which  throws  a  ball  forty-four  one-hundred  the  of  an  inch  in  diam- 
eter, and  throws  it  with  tremendous  force.  The  pistol  is  easier  to  handle 
than  the  carbine,  and  it  is  impossible  to  take  anything  like  accurate  aim 
when  riding  at  full  speed  on  a  wiry  Indian  pony ;  and,  besides,  you  are 
so  near  your  game  that  a  close  sight  is  not  at  all  necessary,  even  supposing 
you  could  possibly  draw  a  bead  along  the  barrel  of  your  weapon.  For 
those  who  prefer  a  rifle  the  best  thing  is  a  Remington,  or  some  other 
form  of  breech-loader,  short  in  the  barrel,  and  of  large  calibre,  so  that  it 
will  disturb  the  interior  of  a  buffalo  in  the  briefest  possible  time.  A 
great  many  fancy  rifles  have  been  taken  to  the  plains;  they  are  pretty  to 
look  at,  but  not  at  all  effective,  as  they  have  no  powers  of  penetration, 
and  are  a  source  of  amusement  to  the  buffaloes  as  soon  as  they  find  out 
that  their  pursuers  are  thus  armed. 

It  was  an  exciting  scene.  The  boys  and  their  good  friend  the  Doctor 
soon  lost  sight  of  the  captain,  and  the  Doctor,  bidding  the  boys  be  care- 
ful what  they  did,  concluded  he  would  have  a  shy  at  the  herd  on  his  own 
account.  Of  course  he  was  quickly  lost  in  the  dust  and  confusion,  and 
the  boys  were  left  to  themselves. 

From  the  brow  of  a  ridge  they  looked  down  on  the  rushing  buffaloes 
and  their  pursuers,  and  Harry  said  it  did  not  require  a  great  stretch  of 
the  imagination  to  transform  the  ground  into  a  battle-field.  Soon  the 
herd  moved  away  from  the  base  of  the  ridge,  raising  a  great  cloud  of 
dust,  through  which  the  figures  of  men  and  animals  were  but  dimly  seen. 
In  a  little  while  the  cloud  was  so  dense  that  only  an  occasional  straggler 
could  be  outlined  through  it,  and  the  prospect  seemed  excellent  that  they 
would  be  left  far  behind. 

"  It's  no  use,  George,"  exclaimed  Harry ;  "  we  can't  stay  here  and  see 
the  buffaloes  disappear  and  we  not  have  a  chance  at  them." 

"  Let's  ride  after  them,"  said  George,  "  and  perhaps  we  can  pick  up 
one  for  ourselves." 


220 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


VIKW    FROM    THE    JUDGE. 


Off  they  started,  and  soon  came  up  with  a  year-old  calf  that  seemed 
to  be  quite  out  of  his  head  with  the  confusion.  Harry  drew  his  pistol 
to  have  a  shot  at  the  fellow,  but  George  checked  him  before  he  could  tire, 
and  suggested  that  perhaps  they  could  take  their  game  in  alive. 

The  proposal  was  accepted,  and,  as  George  afterward  described  the 
incident,  they  surrounded  the  calf  by  getting  on  opposite  sides  of  him. 
Then  they  made  a  noose  of  a  lariat  from  one  of  the  horses,  and  with  some 
difficulty  secured  it  around  the  neck  of  the  juvenile  buffalo.  He  was  ob- 
stinate, and  at  first  refused  to  budge,  but  they  soon  convinced  him  that 


THE   PRIZES   OF  THE    BOYS. 


221 


he  knew  how  to  walk,  and  would  save  himself  much  trouble  if  he  exer- 
cised his  feet.  Harry  led  him,  while  George  followed  and  urged  him 
from  behind,  and  in  this  way  they  brought  their  game  along  in  triumph. 

The  dust  cleared  away,  and  the  scattered  hunters  began  to  return  in 
the  direction  of  camp.  They  had  been  followed  by  wagons  to  bring  in 
the  hides  and  the  best  of  the  meat,  and  our  young  friends  had  not  gone 
far  before  they  met  one  of  the  wagons,  which  had  just  completed  its  load 
and  was  turning  back  to  camp.  The  driver  and  the  men  accompanying 
him  volunteered  to  lead  the  calf  behind  the  wagon,  and  accordingly  he 
was  surrendered  to  them,  and  in  due  time  appeared  at  the  tents. 

The  boys  were  in  great  glee  over  their  buffalo-hunt,  and  the  captain 
complimented  them  on  the  result  of  their  day's  work.  "  A  bull  and  a 
yearling  calf,"  said  he,  "are  by  no  means  a  bad  pair  of  prizes  for  your 
inexperience.  I  predict  you'll  do  more  next  time,  and  perhaps  you'll 
become  the  champion  hunters  of  the  plains  before  you  have  done  with 
them." 


VCLTUKK    IN    A    MIKAGE. 


222 


THE  YOUNG  NDtBODS, 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

MORE  BUFFALO-HUNTING.— ENCOUNTER  WITH   INDIANS. 

THE  afternoon  was  well  advanced  before  the  hunters  were  all  back  in 
camp.     The  rest  of  the  day  was  passed  in  cleaning  weapons  and 
making  preparations  for  an  early  start  on  the  following  morning,  as  it 
was  thought  the  herd  would  move  farther  down  the  valley  in   conse- 
quence of  the  interference  that  had  been  made  on  their  present  grazing- 


BUFFALO-HUNTERS. 


ground.  Everybody  was  in  the  best  possible  humor,  and  the  early  hours 
of  evening  were  enlivened  with  stories  of  the  plains  which  were  not  in 
all  cases  confined  to  a  rigid  statement  of  facts. 


BUFFALO-WALLOWS,  AND  THEIR   USES. 


223 


During  the  morning's  ride  the  boys  had  observed  occasional  depres- 
sions in  the  ground,  in  the  shape  of  basins  about  ten  feet  in  diameter  and 
perhaps  eighteen  or  twenty  inches  deep.  Harry  asked  what  they  were, 
and  was  informed  that  they  were  popularly  known  as  "  wallows,"  and 
were  the  work  of  the  buffaloes. 

In  summer  it  frequently  happens  that  the  buffaloes  become  covered 
with  vermin.  Their  skins  are  irritated  by  them,  and  the  only  way  they 
have  of  ridding  themselves  of  the  unwelcome  visitors  is  by  rolling  in  the 
sand.  Some  persons  think  the  rolling  is  intended  to  assist  the  removal 
of  the  hair  when  the  animal  is  shedding  his  coat  in  the  spring,  and  quite 
possibly  this  has  something  to  do  with  it.  Persons  who  claim  to  have 
seen  the  buffaloes  at  this  amusement  say  that  an  old  bull  will  often  roll 
and  twist  about  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  till  every  square  inch  of  his 
skin  has  been  thoroughly  covered  with  dust.  Sometimes  he  takes  a  roll 
just  after  a  rain,  when  the  wallow  is  partly  filled  with  water ;  when  he 
emerges  from  his  mud  bath  he  is  quite  unfit  for  an  introduction  to  a  fash- 
ionable ball-room.  The  soil  of  the  plains  is  usually  quite  adhesive  when 
wet,  and  a  newly-rolled  buffalo  in  the  rainy  season  has  a  solid  coating  not 
less  than  an  inch  in  thickness. 

Captain  Bailey  told  the  youths  that  the  wallows  were  often  used  as 
retreats  by  white  men  when  attacked  by  Indians.  Three  or  four  men  in 
a  wallow,  armed  with  rifles  and  revolv- 
ers, had  been  known  to  keep  off  ten 
times  their  number  of  howling  savages 
for  several  hours. 

The  account  of  the  uses  the  buffalo 
makes  of  the  wallows  called  out  a  story 
from  one  of  the  party  of  the  troubles 
of  the  telegraph  on  the  plains  before 
the  construction  of  the  railway.  He 
said  the  buffaloes  were  fond  of  scratch- 
ing themselves  against  trees,  after  the 
manner  of  domestic  cattle,  and  some- 
times large  trees  were  rubbed  down  by 
them,  and  the  stumps  fairly  worn  away. 
"When  the  telegraph  line  was  first 
built,"  said  he,  "  the  buffaloes  used  to 
rub  against  the  posts  and  break  down 
the  line,  and  the  interruptions  from  this  cause  were  more  frequent  than 
any  other. 


THK    TKLKr.KAPII    PIOM  I  I!. 


224  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

"  The  division  superintendent  between  Fort  Kearney  and  the  Platte 
crossing  was  a  good  deal  troubled  by  the  buffaloes,  and  determined  to  fix 
them.  He  sent  to  Chicago  for  a  thousand  pounds  of  brad-awls,  and  had 
them  stuck  in  the  telegraph  posts  in  the  middle  of  the  buffalo  country. 
He  chuckled  at  the  astonishment  of  the  buffaloes  when  they  next  came 
to  rub  against  the  posts  and  found  their  skins  punctured  by  brad-awls. 

"  The  first  troop  of  bulls  that  came  along  stopped  to  have  a  rub.  The 
leader  took  the  place  of  honor,  and  at  the  very  first  scratch  he  felt  an  un- 
usual sensation.  There  was  a  tingle  along  his  spine  and  down  to  the  very 
tip  of  his  tail.  It  was  like  a  taste  of  cayenne  pepper  to  a  man  with  a 
jaded  appetite,  or  a  new  bonnet  to  a  girl.  Such  a  delicious  scratch  he 
had  never  known  before,  and  he  felt  his  thick  hide  glowing  with  the 
titillation. 

"  It  was  the  custom  among  the  buffaloes  to  have  a  few  turns  at  the 
post — one  after  another ;  but  this  old  bull  found  the  pleasure  so  great  that 
he  forgot  all  the  rules  of  etiquette,  and  continued  to  scratch  as  long  as 
there  was  a  brad-awl  left.  The  others  were  mad  about  it,  and  there  was 
a  fight,  as  might  be  expected.  All  the  rest  turned  on  him  and  drove  him 
away,  and  then  they  found  out  why  the  post  was  so  attractive. 

"  The  most  of  the  brad-awls  were  broken  off  in  their  tough  hides,  but 
the  stubs  remained  in  the  wood,  and  afforded  some  very  fair  scratching. 
They  worked  at  that  post  till  they  had  it  flat  on  the  ground,  and  then 
they  went  for  the  next. 

"  The  news  spread  among  the  buffaloes  that  the  white  man  was  their 
benefactor,  and  had  introduced  a  scratching  system  such  as  the  world  had 
never  known.  They  left  their  grazing-grounds  to  try  the  new  invention, 
and  they  did  nothing  but  scratch  till  they  had  knocked  down  nearly  two 
hundred  miles  of  telegraph  line.  They  would  travel  fifty  miles  to  find 
a  pole  with  a  brad-awl  in  it,  and  there  were  some  terrible  battles  among 
them  for  the  first  chance.  That  experiment  cost  the  Company  more  than 
twenty  thousand  dollars,  besides  a  great  loss  from  the  interruption  of 
business  while  the  line  was  down.  They  only  stopped  the  scratching  by 
getting  a  lot  of  cross-cut  saws  and  fastening  them  perpendicularly  in  the 
posts,  so  that  when  a  buffalo  rubbed  against  it  vigorously  for  a  minute  or 
so  he  would  find  himself  sawed  into  two  buffaloes.  This  was  more  than 
they  could  stand,  and,  after  a  few  dozens  had  thus  divided  themselves,  the 
balance  concluded  to  let  the  telegraph  posts  alone." 

"  You'll  have  a  nightmare  for  that  story,"  said  one  of  the  listeners,  as 
the  party  broke  up  and  retired  to  their  sleeping-places. 

An  hour  later  there  was  an  outcry  that  brought  everybody  to  his  feet. 


PUNISHMENT   FOR  STOUY- TELLING.  225 

It  came  from  the  teller  of  the  brad-awl  story,  \vho  was  sleeping  near 
where  the  horses  were  tied  up,  and  had  appropriated  a  bag  of  oats  for  a 
pillow. 


.  . 


AN    ATTACK    OF    NIGHTMARE. 


He  thought  his  scalp  was  being  removed  by  a  hostile  Indian,  and  he 
yelled  out  for  mercy ;  but  the  savage  red  man  proved  to  be  nothing  more 
dangerous  than  one  of  the  horses,  that  had  got  free  from  his  halter  and 
was  looking  around  for  something  to  eat.  He  scented  the  oats  and  went 
for  them,  and  in  trying  to  take  a  mouthful  he  unintentionally  seized  the 
hair  of  the  slumberer.  Thereupon  came  the  dream  of  the  red  man  and 
his  barbarities,  and  the  consequent  outcry  that  roused  the  camp. 

As  had  been  expected,  the  herd  moved  several  miles  down  the  valley, 
so  that  it  took  a  ride  of  more  than  an  hour  to  reach  them.  Two  of  the 

15 


22G  THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

Imnters  of  the  previous  day  did  not  care  to  go  out,  as  one  of  them  had 
injured  his  hand  during  the  chase,  and  the  other  was  suffering  from  a 
sprained  ankle.  They  kindly  loaned  their  horses  to  the  boys ;  and  as  the 
animals  were  "split-ears"  of  the  best  character,  there  was  a  prospect  that 
the  buffaloes  might  feel  the  weight  of  bullets  from  the  pistols  of  Harry 
and  George.  It  was  stipulated  that  they  were  not  to  make  a  long  run, 
and  each  promised  to  be  content  if  he  killed  a  single  buffalo.  With  this 
understanding  they  joined  in  the  hunt. 

The  herd  was  found,  and  the  usual  preliminaries  of  learning  the  wind 
were  accomplished.  The  race  began  as  before,  each  rider  singling  out  his 
animal  and  paying  strict  attention  to  it.  The  hunt  lasted  less  than  an 
hour,  as  it  was  not  desired  to  kill  too  many  of  the  buffaloes  in  a  single 
day,  and  thus  leave  a  lot  of  meat  to  rot  on  the  ground  or  become  the  food 
of  wolves.  Captain  Bailey  and  the  gentlemen  with  him  were  inclined  to 
set  a  good  example  to  others,  and  not  make  needless  slaughter  for  the 
mere  sake  of  sport. 

George  was  successful  in  bagging  his  buffalo,  or,  rather,  in  bringing  it 
to  the  ground,  as  he  did  not  happen  to  have  any  game-bag  over  his  shoul- 
der that  would  hold  an  animal  of  that  size.  His  prize  was  a  young  cow, 
and  it  was  pronounced  one  of  the  fattest  of  the  herd. 

Harry  was  less  fortunate  than  George.  He  made  the  general  mistake 
of  a  novice,  and  picked  out  an  old  bull — one  of  the  fellows  that  would 
have  been  driven  from  the  herd  by  the  youngsters  in  the  course  of  the 
season — and  was  not. a  valuable  prize  for  a  hunter.  He  could  not  run 
fast,  and  Harry  had  no  difficulty  in  keeping  up  with  him  ;  but  the  beast 
was  able  to  carry  off  a  large  quantity  of  lead  without  feeling  it.  Harry 
discharged  the  six  barrels  of  his  pistol  into  the  buffalo's  side  with  no 
greater  effect  than  to  make  the  old  fellow  shake  his  tail  each  time,  as 
though  he  had  been  stung  by  a  bee  or  a  wasp.  Then  he  took  a  pistol 
from  the  holster  and  gave  him  six  more,  as  fast  as  he  could  deliver  them. 
His  shots  were  then  exhausted,  and  though  the  bull  was  slackening  speed 
he  was  not  by  any  means  used  up.  One  of  the  gentlemen  of  the  party 
happened  along  just  then,  and  with  a  heavy  bullet  from  a  Remington 
carbine  aimed  directly  at  the  buffalo's  heart,  the  race  was  ended.  Harry 
was  laughed  at  for  attacking  an  old  bull  that  was  of  no  use  whatever  ex- 
cept as  food  for  the  wolves,  and  his  chief  consolation  was  that  he  was  by 
no  means  the  first  hunter  who  had  done  so. 

While  they  were  returning  to, camp,  the  sharp  eyes  of  one  of  the  men 
perceived  an  object  that  would  have  altogether  escaped  the  attention  of  the 
boys.  Even  when  they  were  told  of  it,  they  could  not  readily  make  it  out. 


INDIAN  MODES   OF  HUNTING. 


227 


"  It's  an  Indian  watching  us,"  the  captain  said  to  Harry,  who  was  rid- 
ing at  his  side.  "He  belongs  to  some  wandering  hunting-party  that  is 
after  the  same  herd  we've  been  running,  and  he  wants  to  know  how 
many  we  are." 

The  only  part  of  the  Indian  that  could  be  seen  was  his  head,  and  it 
disappeared  as  the  captain  spoke,  and  was  seen  no  more.     In  a  few  min- 
utes the  party  rose  to  the  crest  of  a 
ridge  and  saw  some  Indians  pursu- 
ing a  buffalo  that  had  become  detach- 
ed from  the  herd,  and  was  doing  his 
best  to  escape  from  Ins  assailants. 

There  were  three  of  the  Indians, 
mounted  on  ponies,  and  armed  with 
bows  and  arrows.  The  captain  rec- 
ognized them  as  Kiowas,  one  of  the 
most  warlike  of  all  the  tribes  on  the 
plains,  and  the  active  participants  in 
many  of  the  Indian  troubles  of  the 
past  twenty  years. 

The  three  Indians  were  riding 
rapidly  at  the  side  of  the  buffalo, 
and  discharging  their  arrows  into 
him  at  very  short  range.  They  paid 

no. heed  to  the  presence  of  the  white  men,  but  kept  at  their  chase  till  the 
buffalo  fell.  Since  the  general  introduction  of  fire-arms  in  the  Far  West, 
many  of  the  Indians  are  supplied  with  rifles,  and  year  by  yeav  fewer  of 
them  engage  in  buffalo-hunting  with  the  bow  and  arrow.  As  the  rifle 
is  much  more  murderous  in  its  character  than  the  more  primitive  arm, 
the  slaughter  of  buffaloes  by  the  Indians  is  greater  than  formerly.  The 
whites  are  justly  chargeable  with  indiscriminate  butchery  of  the  monarchs 
of  the  plains,  but  they  are  not  the  only  offenders;  the  Indians  are  vying 
with  their  pale-faced  antagonists  in  the  work  of  destruction,  and  if  a  law 
is  made  against  the  slaughter  of  the  buffalo,  it  should  be  enforced  against 
all  colors  and  races  of  men. 

Conversation  turned  very  naturally  on  the  modes  of  hunting  practised 
by  the  Indians,  and  on  this  subject  the  captain  was  able  to  give  a  good 
deal  of  information  to  the  boys. 

"Most  white  men,"  said  the  captain,  "prefer  to  hunt  the  buffalo  in 
ways  that  require  skill  or  bravery,  or  both,  but  the  Indian  has  no  such 
sentimental  notions.  If  he  can  drive  a  herd  over  a  cliff  and  kill  thou- 


AN    INDIAN    11KAU 


228  THE   YOUNG   NIMKODS. 

sands  of  animals  at  a  time,  he  is  ready  to  do  so,  but  such  a  performance 
on  the  part  of  whites  is  rarely  heard  of.  So,  too,  is  the  practice  of  hunt- 
ing on  snow-shoes,  which  is  almost  entirely  confined  to  the  Indians.  It 
is  not  much  in  vogue  in  this  part  of  the  buffalo-range,  but  prevails  among 
the  Sioux  and  other  northern  tribes  where  they  have  deep  snows  in  winter. 
"  The  buffalo  is  at  the  mercy  of  the  hunter,  as  he  can  offer  no  defence, 
lie  sinks  into  the  snow  at  every  step,  while  his  pursuer  glides  over  it,  and 
can  choose  his  own  position  and  distance.  With  a  lance,  or  with  a  bow 
and  quiver  of  arrows,  an  Indian  can  kill  as  many  of  the  helpless  creatures 
as  he  chooses,  and  he  rarely  stops  till  he  has  slaughtered  all  within  his 
reach.  It  often  happens  that  a  hunter  need  not  encumber  himself  with 
snow-shoes,  but  can  walk  on  the  hard  crust,  which  easily  supports  his 


KIOWA    INDIANS    CHASING    BUFFALOES. 


weight,  while  it  sinks  beneath  that  of  the  buffalo.  Not  only  does  it  yield 
to  the  buffalo's  feet,  but  the  sharp  crust  lacerates  him  terribly,  so  that  the 
skin  is  torn  from  his  legs  during  the  frantic  efforts  he  makes  to  escape. 

"The  season  when  the  crust  is  on  the  snow  is  the  happy  time  for  the 
wolves  that  always  follow  the  herds  of  buffaloes.  When  the  great  ani- 
mals become  helpless  in  the  snow,  the  wolves  attack  them,  and  frequently 
cause  great  havoc.  They  know  the  anatomy  of  the  buffalo,  and  their  first 
effort  is  to  bite  through  the  hamstrings,  or  tendons  of  the  joints  of  the 


THE    BUFFALOES   HUNTED   BY  WOLVES. 


229 


liind  legs.  When  tlfis  is  done,  the  buffalo  is  disabled, and  his  conversion 
into  food  for  wolves  is  a  question  of  very  brief  time.  When  pursuing 
buffaloes  in  the  open  country  where  there  is  no  snow,  the  first  effort  of 
the  M^olves  is  to  hamstring  their  prey,  and  they  often  display  great  intelli- 
gence in  accomplishing  it.  Several  of  them  generally  hunt  together;  and 


INDIANS    KILLIMi    1U  FKALOICS    IN    THK    SNOW. 


while  some  engage  the  attention  of  a  buffalo  by  worrying  him  in  front, 
one  of  the  pack  will  sneak  around  to  the  rear,  and,  by  making  a  daring 
leap,  will  sever  the  hamstrings  in  a  couple  of  bites.  Then  the  buffalo  falls 
to  the  ground,  and  as  soon  as  he  is  down  his  destruction  is  certain.  Dur- 
ing their  feast  the  wolves  indulge  in  a  great  many  fights,  and  the  strong- 
est generally  refuses  to  allow  the  others  to  join  the  banquet  till  his  own 
hunger  is  satisfied. 

"Another  method  of  hunting  practised  by  the  Indians  is  much  more 
to  their  credit,  as  it  requires  skill  and  patience.  As  yon  are  well  aware, 
the  buffalo  herds  are  constantly  followed  by  wolves,  and  the  buffaloes  are 
so  accustomed  to  the  presence  of  their  enemies  that  they  pay  no  attention 
to  them,  and  allow  them  to  come  very  close.  The  Indians  disguise  them- 
selves in  the  skins  of  wolves,  and  by  creeping  on  all  fours,  and  imitating 
the  motions  of  the  animals  they  resemble,  they  can  get  into  the  midst  of 
a  herd  without  exciting  the  least  suspicion.  They  are  armed  with  their 
bows  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  arrows,  and  by  watching  their  chances 


230 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


they  can  bring  down  a  dozen  buffaloes,  one  after  the  other,  without  alarm- 
ing the  rest.  Two  Indians  hunt  together  in  this  way,  as  the  wolves  gen- 
erally go  in  couples.  They  are  thus  of  mutual  assistance,  and  less  likely 
to  put  the  buffaloes  to  flight  than  if  hunting  alone." 

Soon  after  the  return  of  our  friends  to  carnp,  a  couple  of  visitors  came 
in.  They  were  Indians  from  the  hunting-party  that  had  been  pursuing 
the  buffalo,  and  they  professed  the  wannest  friendship,  and  gave  vent  to 
numerous  "  How-hows,"  the  Indian  method  of  saying  "  How  do  you  do  ?" 
The  captain  treated  them  civilly,  though  he  knew  perfectly  well  that  they 
came  to  learn  the  strength  of  the  party,  and  whether  it  would  be  wortli 
attacking  for  the  sake  of  plunder.  The  fellows  remained  only  a  short 


time,  and  then  departed  by  a  direction  opposite  to  that  by  which  they 
came.  They  evidently  wanted  to  create  the  impression  that  they  had 
dropped  into  the  camp  by  accident,  and  had  no  hostile  intentions.  The 


THE  SCALPING  OPERATION. 


231 


Doctor  told  the  boys  that  in  the  hunting-season  it  is  safe  to  assume 
that  all  Indians  are  hostile,  or  willing  to  be  so  if  a  suitable  chance  occurs. 

Harry  took  a  mental  note  of  the  appearance  and  dress  of  the  visitors, 
and  thought  he  should  know  them  if 
he  met  them  again.  He  was  partic- 
ularly interested  in  the  Indian  mode 
of  hair-dressing,  and  thought  the  red 
men  would  make  a  better  appearance 
if  they  employed  barbers  to  cut  their 
hair.  The  Doctor  explained  some 
of  the  principles  of  the  Indian  toilet, 
and  showed  the  arrangement  of  the 
scalp-lock.  He  said  it  was  not  true, 
as  many  persons  suppose,  that  the  In- 
dian, in  scalping  his  enemy,  removes 
the  whole  of  the  skin  on  which  the 
hair  grows.  The  scalp-lock  on  the 
Indian's  head  is  about  four  inches  in 
diameter,  and  it'  is  a  matter  of  pride 
with  him  to  braid  and  arrange  it  so 
as  to  facilitate  its  removal  in  case  he 
falls  on  the  battle-field.  He  sets  THE  SCALP-LOCK. 

great  store  on  his  scalp  apart  from 

his  regard  for  his  life,  and  if  he  loses  it,  he  is  supposed  to  be  excluded  from 
the  happy  hunting-grounds  which  every  red  man  hopes  to  enter.  The 
Indians  had  rather  fight  with  the  whites  than  with  other  Indians,  as  the 
former  do  not  take  the  scalps  of  those  they  kill,  and  therefore  do  not 
make  any  serious  interference  with  their  happiness  beyond  this  life.  If 
all  the  white  soldiers  and  others  engaged  in  lighting,  the  Indians  should 
adopt  the  practice  of  taking  scalps,  the  savages  would  have  more  discour- 
agements in  going  to  war  than  they  have  at  present. 

Since  the  negro  troops  were  sent  to  the  plains  to  fight  the  Indians, 
the  latter  have  been  greatly  disgusted.  The  negroes  are  excellent  fight- 
ers, can  endure  much  fatigue  where  it  is  not  complicated  with  cold,  and 
have  been  warmly  praised  for  their  excellent  discipline.  The  Indians  do 
not  like  the  negro  scalps,  as  the  black  men  are  in  the  habit  of  cutting 
their  hair  very  short;  but  worse  than  that,  from  a  red  man's  point  of  view, 
they  are  much  given  to  scalping  all  the  Indians  they  kill.  The  majority 
of  the  Indians  on  the  plains  will  decline  to  attack  a  body  of  negro  troops, 
when  they  would  readily  assail  an  equal  number  of  whites. 


THE  YOUNG  NIMROUS. 


CHAPTEE  XIX. 

A   FIGHT  WITH   THE  SAVAGES.— INDIAN   HABITS   AND   CUSTOMS. 

AFTER  the  visit  of  the  Indians  the  greatest  care  was  taken  to  guard 
against  a  surprise.  The  animals  were  constantly  picketed  where 
they  were  under  the  eyes  of  three  or  four  of  the  oldest  of  the  plainsmen, 
and,  as  an  additional  precaution,  these  men  kept  their  horses  ready  sad- 
dled, and  their  rifles  in  the  best  condition  for  immediate  use.  An  Indian 
usually  counts  the  cost  of  an  attack  before  he  makes  it ;  and  if  he  sees  a 
herd  of  animals  so  well  watched  that  .a  stampede  will  result  in  the  death 
of  several  red  men  he  is  apt  to  let  the  business  alone.  Probably,  in  the 
majority  of  cases  in  which  stock  has  been  lost  by  an  Indian  stampede,  the 
whites  were  guilty  of  negligence  in  some  form  or  other.  Generally  they 
did  not  know  the  Indians  were  in  the  neighborhood,  and  were  taken  by 
surprise,  or  they  had  left  the  herd  unguarded  for  a  few  moments  while 
the  men  were  taking  supper.  The  most  experienced  of  the  plainsmen 
have  an  invariable  rule  of  picketing  their  horses  and  setting  a  watch 
when  within  the  limits  of  the  Indian  country,  even  if  they  have  not 
heard  of  any  savages  in  the  vicinity. 

Just  before  sunset  there  was  an  arrival  that  caused  much  excitement 
among  the  hunters.  It  was  an  ambulance  containing  two  gentlemen,  who 
had  set  out  from  Platte  Crossing  to  join  the  hunting-party.  They  started 
two  days  later  than  Captain  Bailey,  and  hoped  to  overtake  him  soon  after 
the  formation  of  the  camp  in  the  buffalo  region.  They  had  a  serious  ad- 
venture not  three  hours  before  reaching  camp,  and  one  of  them  was  suf- 
fering from  an  arrow  wound,  which  the  Doctor  proceeded  to  dress. 

They  were  proceeding  quietly,  when  some  Indians  were  seen  riding 
rapidly  toward  them.  From  their  movements  they  were  at  once  sup- 
posed to  be  hostile,  and  the  driver  put  his  four  mules  to  their  best  speed. 
The  Indians  came  up  with  the  ambulance  after  a  chase  of  a  mile  or  more, 
and  as  soon  as  they  were  within  range  they  let  fly  a  couple  of  arrows. 

This  was  the  signal  for  a  fight,  and  the  two  gentlemen  responded  with 
rifles  and  revolvers,  while  the  driver  attended  to  the  team.  A  mule  has 


A  FIGHT   WITH   THE   INDIANS. 


233 


an  instinctive  dread  of  an  Indian,  and  needs  no  urging  when  the  red  men 
are  about,  and  all  the  driver  had  to  do  was  to  keep  them  in  the  proper 
direction.  The  Indians  were  on  both  sides  of  the  vehicle,  and  close  to  it. 
Arrow  after  arrow  pierced  the  covering,  and  it  was  marvellous  that  the 
occupants  escaped.  One  Indian  fell, and  then  another  and  another;  there 
were  some  fifteen  or  twenty  in  the  attacking  party,  and  the  bullets  from 
the  ambulance  told  rather  severely  on  them  ;  but  they  stuck  to  it  bravely, 
and  just  as  the  gentlemen  thought  their  chances  of  escape  were  very 
slight  one  of  them  managed  to  plant  a  bullet  in  the  body  of  the  chief. 
He  fell  from  his  pony,  and  the  others  gathered  around  him,  while  the 
ambulance  went  on.  Whether  the  chief  was  killed  or  not  there  was  no 
time  to  inquire,  and  the  travellers  were  quite  content  to  proceed  without 


this  important  information.     The  attack  was  not  renewed,  and  nothing 
more  was  seen  of  the  Indians. 

Captain  Bailey  determined,  on  the  following  morning,  to  change  the 
position  of  the  camp,  so  that  the  report  of  the  spies  would  be  of  no  use 
to  the  Indians.  Accordingly,  the  tents  were  struck,  the  teams  harnessed, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  train  was  on  the  move  in  the  direction  of  the 


234 


THE  YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


Monument  Rocks — a  collection  of  cliffs  that  stood  by  themselves  in  the 
valley  of  the  creek,  and  formed  a  landmark  visible  for  a  long  distance. 


THE    CAM!'   AT    MOXUMEXT    ROCKS. 


Harry  could  hardly  believe  his  eyes  when  he  first  caught  sight  of  the 
rocks,  as  the  resemblance  to  a  pile  of  masonry  was  very  striking.  George 
was  similarly  deceived,  and  asked  the  Doctor  if  there  were  any  ruins  of 
ancient  cities  on  the  plain  where  they  were  travelling.  It  required  very 
little  imagination  to  convert  the  rocks  into  a  cathedral  with  immense 
square  towers,  or  one  of  those  temples  of  ancient  Egypt  that  are  the 
wonder  of  all  beholders. 

They  found  a  party  camped  there  before  them,  and  for  mutual  protec- 
tion the  new-comers  joined  the  others.  The  wagons  were  "  corralled ;" 
that  is,  they  were  formed  into  an  oval  with  an  opening  at  one  end, 
through  which  the  stock  could  be  driven.  This  is  a  well-known  custom 
with  all  those  who  travel  on  the  plains  with  wagons,  whether  drawn  by 
oxen,  horses,  or  mules.  The  corral  is  a  yard  where  the  stock  can  be 
driven  to  be  yoked,  or  harnessed,  or  shut  up  at  night ;  it  also  forms  an 
excellent  defence  against  Indians,  as  it  is  a  fortification  that  they  are  far 
from  willing  to  attack.  Many  a  wagon-train  has  been  saved  from  the 


FORMING  A  CORRAL. 


235 


Indians  by  means  of  the  corral,  and  others  have  been  destroyed  by  negli- 
gence to  form  it. 

Sometimes  the  tents  form  a  part  of  the  corral,  particularly  among  the 
people  of  the  Eed  River  of  the  North,  where  little  two-wheeled  carts, 
each  drawn  by  a  single  ox,  are  in  general  use.  Farther  south  the  cart  is 
almost  unknown,  and  its  place  is  filled  by  the  "  prairie  schooner,"  or  large 
wagon  with  four  wheels,  and  drawn  by  four  or  five  yoke  of  oxen  in  each 
team.  The  name  of  "prairie  schooner"  is  by  no  means  inappropriate,  as 
the  white  cover  of  the  wagon  is  visible  for  a  long  distance  over  the  tree- 
less plain,  and  is  by  no  means  unlike  the  sail  of  a  ship  in  its  general  ap- 
pearance. A  wagon-train  may  be  quite  aptly  compared  to  a  fleet  of  sail- 
boats in  company,  and  when  it  is  encountered  on  a  rarely -travelled  route 


THE    NOKTH. 


the  sensation  to  the  spectator  is  not  unlike  that  of  a  sailor  when  lie  meets 
a  ship  on  the  trackless  ocean. 

The  boys  had  seen  several  of  the  great  ox-wagons  used  for  the  trans- 
port of  merchandise  on  the  plains,  but  up  to  their  arrival  at  Monument 
Rocks  they  had  no  opportunity  to  examine  one  closely.  Happily  for  the 
gratification  of  their  curiosity,  the  train  that  they  joined  was  composed  of 
these  vehicles,  and  they  had  plenty  of  time  to  study  them. 

Harry  made  note  of  the  fact  that  the  ox-wagon  was  a  heavy  vehicle, 
with  a  canvas  cover  thick  enough  to  keep  out  the  rain  and  protect  the 
goods  that  were  stowed  beneath  it.  The  cover  was  held  in  place  by  stout 
hoops,  and  when  the  wagon  was  to  receive  or  discharge  its  load  the  cover 
and  hoops  could  be  easily  removed.  The  Doctor  told  him  that  when  the 


236  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

train  was  on  the  move  it  was  customary  to  "double  up"  both  teams  and 
wagons.  One  wagon  had  its  tongue  run  under  the  body  of  another  and 
made  fast,  and  then  the  teams  were  composed  of  ten  yoke  of  oxen  instead 
of  live.  This  arrangement  enabled  the  train  to  be  managed  by  fewer 
men  than  under  the  other  system ;  and  when  a  specially  bad  place  in  the 
road  was  reached  or  a  river  was  to  be  crossed,  the  wagons  could  be  sep- 
arated and  taken  over  singly. 

The  Doctor  told  the  boys  that  the  wagon  had  been  a  great  feature 
on  the  plains,  but  was  rapidly  disappearing,  owing  to  the  extension  of  the 
railway.  Wherever  the  railway  went  the  wagon  was  of  no  further  use, 
and  thousands  of  these  vehicles  were  lying  idle  in  various  towns  and 
cities  west  of  the  Missouri  River.  At  one  time  a  single  firm  at  Leaven- 
worth,  Kansas,  had  a  million  dollars  invested  in  wagons  and  oxen,  and 
other  firms  had  proportionately  large  sums.  They  were  stretched  along 
the  roads  to  Salt  Lake  City  and  Santa  Fe,  and  when  the  gold  excitement 
in  the  region  of  Pike's  Peak  was  at  its  height  and  attracting  the  atten- 
tion of  the  country,  the  trains  along  the  road  there  formed  an  almost 
daily  line. 

The  men  that  drove  the  teams  were  quite  as  interesting  as  the  wagons. 
They  reminded  the  boys  of  the  rough  fellows  they  had  seen  in  the  lum- 
ber-camps in  the  backwoods  of  Maine,  and  the  Doctor  told  them  there 
was  a  marked  similarity  between  the  two  occupations.  "  These  men  are 
known  as  '  bullwhackers,'  "  said  he,  "  and  they  will  disappear  in  their  turn 
as  the  boatmen  of  the  Mississippi  disappeared,  when  steamers  took  the 
place  of  flat  and  keel  boats  on  the  Father  of  Waters.  The  bullwhacker 
is  a  character;  he  has  a  hard  life,  and  not  infrequently  lays  his  bones  on 
the  prairie,  with  the  help  of  his  enemy  the  red  man.  But  he  is  attached 
to  the  plains,  and  it  is  said  that  when  a  man  lias  once  followed  the  occu- 
pation of  ox-driver  for  a  year  or  two,  he  is  reluctant  to  give  it  up. 

"His  language  does  not  fit  him  for  the  head  of  a  Sunday-school. 
There  is  no  more  skilful  adept  in  the  use  of  profanity  than  the  bull- 
whacker,  and  he  rarely  makes  the  most  ordinary  statement  without  the 
aid  of  a  volley  of  oaths.  His  oxen  are  accustomed  to  be  sworn  at,  and  it 
is  the  belief  of  many  a  plainsman  that  a  team  cannot  be  made  to  pull  a 
pound  in  a  difficult  place  unless  encouraged  by  the  peculiar  vocabulary 
of  the  driver. 

"  If  }rou  want  to  make  a  picture  of  the  bullwhacker,  you  must  draw  a 
rough  but  well-formed  man,  with  a  face  as  brown  as  an  overdone  loaf,  by 
reason  of  its  exposure  to  the  weather,  and  with  hair  and  beard  rarely  vis- 
ited by  a  comb;  a  slouch  hat  covers  his  head,  and  a  long  knife  hangs  at 


A  PLAINSMAN    AT   HOME. 


237 


his  waist,  ready  for  use  on  an  Indian  during  a  fight,  or  for  the  more  pro- 
saic occupation  of  cutting  up  meat  for  breakfast  and  dinner;  his  feet  are 
incased  in  tall  boots  that  half  conceal  his  trousers,  and  these  indispensa- 
ble garments  are  often  'half -soled'  in  the  rear  with  broad  patches  of 
buckskin,  to  give  additional  strength  to  new  cloth,  or  cover  serious  rents 
in  old  ;  a  red  or  blue  shirt  covers  the  upper  half  of  his  body;  and  as  this 
garment  is  rarely  washed,  its  appearance  is  by  no  means  attractive. 


I'KAIKIK-SCHOONER    AND    UULLWHACKKK. 


"  The  whip  of  the  bullwhacker  is  a  remarkable  contrivance,  and  when 
he  uses  it  the  effect  is  something  fearful.  The  handle  is  not  more  than 
a  yard  in  length,  but  the  lash  often  measures  eighteen  or  twenty  feet. 
It  is  made  of  rawhide,  cut  in  strips  and  braided,  and  there  are  various 


23S  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

fancies  concerning  the  proper  shape  to  be  given  to  it.  The  most  ap- 
proved form  is  one  that,  swells  as  it  leaves  the  handle,  and  continues  to 
do  so  for  five  or  six  feet ;  then  it  decreases  gradually  to  the  end,  where 
it  is  like  a  thong  of  iron  wire.  It  is  popularly  known  as  the  'blacksnake,' 
and  when  it  is  flung  at  an  ox  and  takes  him  fairly  on  the  side,  it  dou- 
bles him  up  as  though  he  had  been  struck  with  a  hammer.  The  old 
teamsters  are  wonderfully  skilful  in  throwing  the  lash,  which  is  no  more 
than  we  should  expect  when  we  remember  that  they  have  a  life-long 
practice  with  it.  Sometimes  a  bull  whacker  will  hold  a  coin  in  his  fin- 
gel's  for  another  to  knock  it  out  with  his  lash,  just  as  gentlemen  assist 
each  other  in  pistol-practice.  Not  infrequently  the  result  is  the  same  as 

has  been  recorded  of  pistol-shots,  and 
the  holder  of  the  coin  carries  a  fin- 
ger that  has  been  stripped  of  skin, 
until  nature  heals  the  wound." 

The  boys  went  out  with  two  of 
the  men  to  assist  in  gathering  buf- 
falo -  chips  for  the  evening's  fire. 
While  making  the  round,  they  came 
upon  the  remains  of  a  man  who 
had  evidently  been  killed  by  Indians. 
The  flesh  had  been  stripped  from  the 
bones  by  the  wolves,  and  some  of  the 
me  iNDi.vss  VICTIX.  prowlers  were  still  in  the  vicinity, 

perhaps  hoping  that  fortune  would 

favor  them  again  in  the  same  way.  The  shoes  were  still  on  the  feet,  and 
the  story  of  the  death  was  told  by  four  arrows  sticking  among  the  ribs. 
Evidently  the  Indians  were  not  numerous,  and  had  gone  away  hastily, 
but  not  so  much  so  as  to  omit  the  ceremony  of  scalping  their  victim. 

The  arrows  for  war  purposes  are  quite  different  from  those  employed 
in  hunting  buffaloes.  The  general  shape  and  style  are  unlike,  and  the 
dissimilarity  is  greatest  in  the  head  of  the  weapon.  The  buffalo  arrow 
is  firmly  fastened  to  the  head,  but  the  war  arrow  is  so  loosely  attached 
that  the  attempt  to  withdraw  it  generally  detaches  the  head,  and  leaves 
it  in  the  flesh  of  the  victim.  It  sometimes  happens  that  a  wounded  man 
recovers  with  an  iron  arrow-head  buried  in  his  body,  but  more  frequently 
the  result  is  fatal.  Sometimes  arrows  are  poisoned,  and  in  such  cases  the 
slightest  scratch  is  liable  to  cause  death. 

George  was  curious  to  know  how  the  poison  for  arrows  was  obtained 
by  the  Indians,  and  the  Doctor  proceeded  to  enlighten  him. 


POISONED  ARROWS.  239 

"They  generally  get  it,"  said  he,  "from  the  fangs  of  a  rattlesnake. 
He  is  made  angry  by  being  annoyed  for  awhile,  and  then  a  piece  of  meat 
is  held  out  for  him  to  strike  at.  Immediately  he  has  done  so,  a  stick  is 
placed  in  the  hole  made  by  his  fangs,  and  after  it  has  remained  there  a 
short  time,  it  is  withdrawn  and  covered  with  a  substance  that  protects  it 
from  the  moisture.  This  piece  of  wood  forms  the  arrow-head,  and  it  is 
only  necessary  that  it  shall  inflict  a  slight  wound  to  cause  death.  Its  ef- 
fects may  be  counteracted  in  the  same  way  as  the  bite  of  a  rattlesnake: 
the  wound  may  be  vigorously  sucked  to  remove  the  poison,  or  seared 
with  a  hot  iron,  while  liberal  doses  of  whiskey  are  supplied  to  the  patient. 

"  Another  mode  of  poisoning  arrows  is  by  dipping  the  points  in  a 
piece  of  putrid  liver,  and  still  another  by  touching  them  with  strychnine 
after  first  moistening  them  with  glue.  Generally,  the  Indians  do  not  use 
poisoned  arrows,  partly  for  the  reason  that  they  are  dangerous  to  the 
owners  of  them,  and  partly  because  they  are  of  no  advantage  in  securing 
scalps.  It  is  only  when  there  is  a  war  of  extermination  in  progress  that 
the  poisoned  arrow  comes  in  play,  and  then  it  is  used  with  great  effec- 
tiveness." 

The  Doctor  further  explained  that  generally,  when  a  party  of  Indians 
has  killed  a  white  man,  each  of  them  shoots  an  arrow  into  the  body  of 
the  victim,  so  as  to  have  a  share  in  the  honor  of  his  slaughter.  This  is 
known  as  "  the  counting  coup,"  and  is  occasionally  useful  to  those  who 
are  pursuing  a  hostile  band,  as  it  reveals  the  number  of  Indians  it  con- 
tains. As  many  as  fift\T  arrows  have  been  found  in  the  body  of  a  single 
white  man,  and  it  was  pretty  evident  that  each  arrow  represented  an  In- 
dian. They  generally  do  this  when  they  have  time,  and  their  neglecting 
the  ceremony  is  an  indication  that  they  were  in  a  hurry.  But  they  must 
be  very  hard  pressed  indeed  to  omit  to  scalp  the  men  who  fall  beneath 
their  shots,  and  they  often  run  great  risks  to  secure  the  proofs  of  their 
valor. 

After  a  successful  fight  the  Indians  generally  take  the  earliest  oppor- 
tunity to  hold  a  dance  over  the  scalps  they  have  taken.  It  usually  takes 
place  at  night  and  around  a  fire,  and  this  practice  is  turned  to  advantage 
by  the  old  Indian-fighters,  who  sometimes  manage  to  fall  on  them  while 
engaged  in  their  glorification.  They  have  dances  before  starting  on  a 
foray,  or  proceeding  on  a  peaceful  hunt  for  buffaloes;  in  fact  almost  ev- 
ery event  of  consequence  is  thus  celebrated.  Some  of  the  dances  are 
common  to  all  the  Indians  on  the  Western  plains,  while  others  are  pecul- 
iar to  certain  tribes.  Captain  Marcy, in  his  "Army  Life  on  the  Border," 
gives  an  interesting  description  of  a  dance  which  one  of  his  friends  wit- 


240 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


nessed  among  the  Tonkawas,  to 
celebrate  the  origin  of  the  tribe; 
and  as  it  is  conducted  with  great 
secrecy,  there  are  very  few  white 
men  who  have  seen  it. 

The  performance  was  given 
in  a  large  lodge  prepared  for  the 
occasion.  About  fifty  warriors, 


THE    COUNTING   COUP. 


dressed  in  wolf-skins,  came  in  on  all  fours,  and  by  howling,  growling,  and 
quarrelling,  they  imitated  very  well  the  habits  of  the  animals  they  repre- 
sented. They  kept  this  up  for  some  time,  and  then  began  sniffing  at  the 
ground,  as  if  searching  for  something  concealed  there. 

By-and-by  one  of  them  stopped  suddenly,  and  began  to  dig  in  the 
earth.  The  rest  gathered  round  to  assist  him,  arid  in  a  little  while  they 
brought  out  a  live  Indian,  who  had  been  buried  there  previous  to  the 
ceremony.  As  soon  as  they  had  brought  him  to  view,  they  ran  around 
him  and  examined  him  with  the  greatest  apparent  curiosity,  as  though 
such  a  being  had  never  been  seen  before. 

A  council  of  the  oldest  wolves  was  called,  to  determine  what  to  do 
with  him.  The  Indian  made  a  speech  to  the  following  effect: 

"  You  have  taken  me  from  the  spirit-land,  where  I  was  contented  and 


ADVICE   OF  AN   INDIAN  COUNCIL. 


211 


happy,  and  brought  me  into  this  world,  where  I  am  a  stranger,  and  I 
know  not  what  I  shall  do  for  food  and  clothing.  It  is  better  you  should 
place  me  back  where  you  found  me,  otherwise  I  shall  freeze  and  starve." 
The  council  deliberated  on  this  proposal,  and  finally  refused  to  put 
him  back  where  they  found  him.  They  advised  him  to  gain  his  living  in 
the  same  way  that  the  wolves  did;  he  must  go  out  into  the  wilderness, 
and  live  by  robbing,  killing,  and  stealing;  but  he  must  never  build  a 
house  or  cultivate  the  soil,  as  by  so  doing  he  would  condemn  himself  to 
certain  death.  Then  they  gave  him  a  bow  and  arrows,  and  explained 


TIIK    WOLF-DANCE    OF    THE    TONKAWAS. 


that  they  were  sufficient  for  supplying  him  with  food  and  clothing,  and 
with  this  they  retired  from  the  lodge,  and  left  him  to  shift  for  himself. 

The  Tonkawas  and  other  tribes  claim  that  they  have  always  obeyed 
the  injunction  which  is  so  closely  connected  with  their  origin.  Most  of 
the  Indians  of  the  Far  West  are  opposed  to  living  on  reservations,  and 
learning  to  till  the  soil,  and  it  is  doubtless  due  to  some  of  their  traditions 
that  they  have  such  an  aversion  to  the  habits  of  civilized  life. 

16 


242 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

A   CHANGE  OF   CAMP.— MORE   HUNTING   AND   MORE   INDIANS. 

nplIE  buffaloes  were  not  disturbed  on  the  day  the  camp  was  moved,  as 
-*-  Captain  Bailey  did  not  think  it  prudent  to  go  out  till  something  was 
known  of  the  number  of  Indians  in  the  neighborhood  and  their  disposi- 
tion. There  could  be  very  little  doubt  of  their  unfriendly  feeling,  after 
the  attack  on  the  ambulance,  and  therefore  an  assault  might  be  looked  for 
whenever  the  Indians  felt  strong  enough  to  capture  the  camp  .without 
too  great  a  loss. 

Just  about  sunset  a  friendly  Indian  came  in  and  reported  the  buffa- 
loes some  twelve  or  fifteen  miles  to  the  south-west,  and  said  they  were 
being  pursued  by  a  band  of  a  hundred  or  more  Kiowas  and  half  that 
number  of  Arapahoes.  Farther  to  the  west  there  were  other  herds  of 
buffaloes,  and  he  was  not  aware  that  they  had  been  hunted  by  anybody, 
either  white  or  red.  A  consultation  was  held,  and  it  was  determined  to 
move  in  the  direction  of  the  new  herds  for  the  double  purpose  of  avoid- 
ing an  encounter  with  the  Indians,  and  securing  a  hunting-ground  where 


MOVING   INTO    THE    NEW    CAM1'. 


PRODUCTS  OF  THE   PLAINS. 


243 


the  animals  had  not  been  pursued  as  much  as  those  in  the  immediate 
neighborhood. 

At  daylight  the  teams  were  under  way,  and  the  new  camp  was  formed 
in  a  locality  where  there  was  an  excellent  supply  of  wood  and  water, 
under  the  shelter  of  some  cliffs  that  overhung  the  creek,  and  cut  off  all 
approach  in  that  direction.  Captain  Bailey's  party  and  the  wagon-train 
had  joined  their  forces,  and  as  they  moved  into  the  camping-ground  the 
long  procession  of  vehicles  presented  an  imposing  picture.  There  were 
no  indications  that  anybody  had  been  there  recently,  and  it  was  confi- 
dently expected  that  the  hunters  would  have  everything  their  own  way 
for  a  few  days  at  least. 

The  grass  was  thick  and  sweet  in  the  valley,  but  on  the  hills  surround- 
ing it  there  was  very  little  vegeta- 
tion. A  plant  peculiar  to  the  plains 
grew  in  the  vicinity,  and  the  boys 
were  interested  in  the  uses  that  the 
teamsters  made  of  it.  It  was  known 
as  "  soap-wreed,"  and  the  roots  were 
an  excellent  substitute  for  the  com- 
mon soap  of  civilization.  Harry 
thought  it  would  be  a  fortune  to 
anybody  who  would  endeavor  to 
convert  the  weed  into  soap  and 
place  it  on  the  market,  but  the  Doc- 
tor told  him  the  practical  difficulties 
of  the  business  would  be  the  ex- 
pense of  transportation,  which  would 

eat  up  all  the  profits.  Consequently,  Harry  abandoned  his  idea  of  The 
Great  American  Soap  Company,  and  the  millions  that  were  to  be  made 
from  its  organization. 

While  Harry  was  pursuing  his  investigation  with  the  newly-discov- 
ered plant,  George  was  devoting  his  attention  to  the  substitutes  for  water 
on  the  parts  of  the  route  where  that  article  was  scarce.  He  found  that 
the  kitchen  and  table  utensils  could  be  cleansed  without  water,  and  made 
as  bright  as  the  most  fastidious  could  wish.  Here  is  his  note  on  the 
subject : 

"They  clean  the  knives  and  forks  by  sticking  them  in  the  ground  a 
few  times.  The  earth  takes  up  the  grease,  or  whatever  else  is  adhering 
to  them,  and  when  the  operation  is  completed  the  articles  are  thoroughly 
washed.  Plates,  cups,  pans,  pots,  and  kettles  are  rubbed  with  sand  and 


SOAP-WEED. 


244  THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

wisps  of  grass  until  perfectly  dry  and  clean,  and  then  they  are  ready  for 
use  when  wanted.  The  man  who  invented  this  process  knew  what  he 
was  about." 

Their  expectations  relative  to  the  buffaloes  were  realized.  The  herds 
had  not  been  disturbed,  and  the  hunting  was  pursued  to  the  satisfaction 
of  all  concerned  for  a  couple  of  days.  The  third  day  it  was  found  that 
the  buffaloes  had  left  the  valley,  and  again  the  camp  was  changed.  The 
boys  found  that  the  country  became  more  broken  as  they  went  westward, 
and  in  some  places  the  region  next  the  streams  was  full  of  great  seams 
that  had  been  fonnec(  ages  before  by  the  water  flowing  down  from  the 
elevated  to  the  lower  land. 

The  buffaloes,  in  heading  for  a  new  feeding-ground,  had  gone  among 
"  The  Breaks,"  as  this  peculiar  formation  is  called,  and  the  boys  wondered 
how  they  could  tind  their  way  through.  The  Doctor  told  them  that  the 
animals  had  trails,  or  paths,  as  already  described,  and  in  moving  among 
the  breaks  he  had  never  known  them  to  get  lost.  The  only  danger  to 
them  in  these  localities  was  from  the  Indians,  who  sometimes  station 
themselves  where  the  ridges  of  the  breaks  are  narrow,  and  drive  the  buf- 
faloes over  the  cliffs  by  turning  them  from  their  track.  It  happens  now 
and  then  that  a  couple  of  herds  meet  in  the  passes,  and  then  a  fight  en- 
sues between  the  leading  bulls.  The  stronger  pushes  the  weaker  out  of 
the  way,  and  the  latter  is  quite  liable  to  be  killed  by  the  fall.  These  oc- 
currences are  rare,  however,  as  the  migrations  of  the  herds  are  usually  in 
one  direction,  according  to  the  season  of  the  year. 

The  boys  gathered  some  additional  facts  about  the  trade  in  buffalo- 
robes,  and  the  way  in  which  it  is  conducted  by  white  men  and  Indians. 
Their  information  came  from  several  sources,  and  sometimes  there  was 
a  conflict  of  authorities.  It  took  them  some  time  to  arrange  their  notes 
into  a  concise  story,  which  they  did  as  follows : 

"The  slaughter  of  the  buffaloes  is  estimated  by  those  who  have  stud- 
ied the  subject  at  about  a  quarter  of  a  million  every  year.  One-third  of 
the  number  is  killed  by  white  men,  and  the  balance  by  Indians.  The 
Indians  kill  for  the  sake  of  both  meat  and  hides,  but  it  is  not  likely  that 
they  save  even  half  of  the  former.  What  they  do  not  need  for  present 
use  they  preserve  in  two  ways.  They  cut  it  into  long  strips,  and  dry  it  in 
the  sun  or  over  a  fire.  The  meat  thus  preserved  is  said  to  be  'jerked,' 
and  resembles  a  strip  of  leather  both  in  appearance  and  taste.  The  other 
preparation  is  known  as  '  pemmican,'  and  is  made  of  dried  meat  that  has 
been  pounded  fine,  and  then  mixed  with  berries  and  fat.  It  is  sewed  up 
in  a  green  hide;  and  as  the  hide  dries  and  shrinks  the  pemmican  becomes 


]N  THE  BUFFALO  COUNTRY. 


245 


A    HERD    AMONG    THIS    HREAK8. 


hard  that  a  hatchet  \s  re- 
quired to  cut  it  to  advantage. 
It  is  easily  transported,  and 
forms  the  food  of  great  num- 
bers of  people  in  the  season 
when  fresh  meat  cannot  be  ob- 
tained. The  Indians  and  the 
hunters,  who  spend  their  lives 


246 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


on  the  plains,  pretend  to  be  fond  of  it,  but  a  white  man  who  has  been 
accustomed  to  the  food  of  civilization  does  not  take  kindly  to  pemmican, 
and  rarely  eats  it  if  he  can  get  anything  else. 


"  FIRE-WATER. " 

"  Of  the  buffaloes  thus  killed  every  year  it  is  thought  that  the  hides 
of  all  but  ten  or  twenty  thousand  are  saved.  Fifty  thousand  are  thought 
to  be  obtained  by  the  'hide-hunters'  of  Kansas,  Nebraska,  Colorado,  and 
other  western  and  south-western  States,  who  make  no  attempt  to  save  any 
of  the  meat  beyond  what  they  need  at  the  time.  Until  a  few  years  ago 
the  Indians  nsed  to  come  to  the  forts  or  trading-posts  once  a  year  to  sell 
their  robes,  and  the  scenes  on  those  occasions  were  very  interesting.  They 
formed  their  camps  just  outside-  a  fort,  and  a  few  of  the  Indians  were  let 
in  at  a  time  to  do  their  trading.  The  whites  were  careful  to  keep  well 
armed,  and  to  put  the  red  men  outside  when  there  was  the  least  sign  of 
a  disturbance.  The  robes  were  usually  taken  at  a  valuation  of  four  or 
five  dollars  each,  and  paid  for  in  sugar  at  a  dollar  a  pound,  whiskey  two 
dollars  a  pint,  and  other  things  in  like  proportion.  Money  changed  hands 
very  rarely,  and  when  it  did  the  coin  in  use  was  the  American  half-dollar 
— the  only  currency  known  to  the  wild  Indian  of  the  plains. 


THE   EFFECTS   OF   FIRE-WATER. 


247 


"  The  article  most  in  demand  among  the  Indians,  and  one  of  which 
they  can  never  get  an  adequate  supply,  is  whiskey.  Most  white  men  are 
unwilling  to  sell  it  to  them,  and  for  those  unprincipled  ones  who  supply 
them  with  the  tire-water  there  are  severe  penalties  prescribed.  All  the 
bad  qualities  of  an  Indian  come  out  when  he  is  intoxicated,  and  he  will 
butcher  his  twin-brother,  and  all  the  women  and  children  belonging  to 
him,  as  readily  as  he  wrould  take  a  white  man's  scalp.  When  a  party  of 
Indians  has  procured  a  lot  of  wrhiskey,  they  carefully  lay  aside  all  their 
weapons,  so  that  no  accident  shall  happen  ;  and  when  this  formality  has 
been  observed  the  intoxication  begins.  It  is  said  that  an  Indian  of  the 
Kiowa  tribe  once  asked  a  friendly  white  man  to  tie  him  hand  and  foot, 
so  that  he  could  do  no  harm,  and  then  pour  the  whiskey  down  his  throat. 
The  pale-face  did  so ;  and  when  the  red  man  had  become  insensible  from 


TKADKRS    AT    AN    INDIAN    VILLAGK. 


the  effects  of  the  liquid,  the  former  departed  with  all  the  robes  and  other 
goods  and  chattels  he  could  lay  hands  on.  The  theft  was  charged  to 
others  who  dropped  in  after  the  white  man  had  gone,  and  the  loser  was 
never  able  to  fasten  it  on  the  right  party. 

"Of  late  years  there  has  been  so  much  competition  for  the  Indian 


L>±$  THE  YOUNG  N1MRODS. 

trade,  that  the  old  custom  of  having  the  savages  come  to  the  posts  lias 
been  given  up,  and  the  traders  find  their  way  to  the  Indian  villages  af- 
ter the  autumn  hunts  are  over.  They  generally  go  in  parties  of  five  or 
six,  under  one  leader,  and  it  is  desirable  that  a  majority  of  them,  and,  if 
possible,  the  entire  number,  shall  have  a  previous  acquaintance  with  the 
Indians  they  are  visiting. 

"They  carry  several  wagon -loads  of  Indian  goods,  such  as  beads, 
cloths  of  different  kinds,  trinkets,  toys,  and  a  thousand  odds  and  ends  that 


1'KK.SSISG    KOIIKS    ISTO    BALES. 


please  the  fancy  of  the  savages.  Very  rarely  do  they  carry  whiskey ;  not 
that  they  are  morally  opposed  to  dealing  in  that  article,  but  because  they 
know  their  lives  will  be  endangered  if  they  allow  an  Indian  to  become 
intoxicated  in  their  vicinity,  and  also  if  it  is  known  that  they  have  whis- 
key in  their  outfits  and  will  not  sell  it.  The  best  plan  is  not  to  have  a 
drop  of  it  along,  and  then  there  can  be  no  trouble.  The  most  of  the 
traders  are  also  chary  of  selling  fire-arms  to  the  Indians ;  but  the  latter 
have  no  great  difficulty  in  procuring  both  rifles  and  ammunition,  as  there 
is  a  sufficient  number  of  unprincipled  men  ready  to  supply  them  on  re- 
ceipt of  the  high  prices  the  Indians  are  willing  to  pay. 

"  The  trading  is  not  opened  until  the  chief  has  been  properly  loaded 
with  presents,  and  everybody  who  has  any  influence  in  the  camp  must  be 


TRADING  WITH  THE  INDIANS.  24i> 

attended  to  in  the  same  way.  Sometimes  the  trader  has  a  tent  of  his  own, 
but  more  frequently  he  is  lodged  by  the  chief,  who  assigns  him  a  tepe,  or 
wigwam  for  his  private  use.  The  fact  is,  the  chief  thereby  quarters  his 
family  on  the  trader,  and  expects  them  to  be  equal  sharers  of  the  white 
man's  food  as  long  as  the  latter  has  any  to  share.  Then  there  is  a  recep- 
tion or  dance  the  evening  after  his  arrival,  when  he  is  expected  to  make 
presents  to  everybody,  and  the  festivities  are  kept  up  for  two  or  three 
days  before  trade  can  be  opened.  By  this  time  a  quarter  of  the  stock 
will  be  given  away,  and  consequently  the  trader  must  demand  high  prices 
when  the  actual  commerce  is  under  way. 

"As  fast  as  the  skins  are  obtained  they  are  made  into  bundles  of  ten 
each,  and  these  bundles  are  compressed  into  bales  by  means  of  a  rude  ap- 
paratus erected  on  the  spot  by  the  owner  of  the  goods.  When  the  trader 
has  exhausted  his  stock,  or  secured  all  the  robes  that  the  village  contains, 
he  moves  on,  and  the  place  knows  him  no  more  till  the  following  year. 

"An  Indian  village  in  winter  is  an  interesting  spectacle.  The  squaws 
perform  the  work,  while  the  men  lounge  about,  or  sit  around  a  fire  and 
have  a  comfortable  smoke.  They  wrap  themselves  in  their  buffalo-robes, 
and  pay  little  attention  to  what  is  going  on,  with  the  exception  of  a  few 
who  are  stationed  in  tree-tops  or  other  elevated  places  to  give  warning 
of  the  approach  of  any  possible  danger.  Lances  and  shields  are  placed 
where  they  can  be  readily  seized,  and  some  of  the  ponies  are  tethered  in 
front  'of  the  lodges  of  their  owners.  The  boys  amuse  themselves  by  prac- 
tising with  bows  and  arrows,  and  when  other  marks  are  wanting  they 
make  use  of  the  wolfish-looking  dogs  that  abound  among  the  Indians. 

"  These  dogs  are  not  of  much  use  for  hunting  purposes,  but  are  main- 
tained as  articles  of  food.  Roast  and  stewed  dog  are  delicacies  among 
the  Indians,  and  when  a  chief  wishes  to  show  special  honor  to  a  visitor, 
the  fattest  dog  in  the  village  is  slaughtered  and  served  up.  An  Indian 
who  visited  a  military  post  on  one  occasion  took  a  fancy  to  the  wife  of 
one  of  the  officers,  and  proposed  a  trade.  He  offered  two  of  his  own 
squaws  in  exchange,  and  when  the  proposal  was  declined,  he  offered  four 
of  the  nicest  and  fattest  dogs  that  could  be  found,  and  had  them  led  be- 
fore the  officer.  He  argued  that  he  was  very  liberal  in  offering  two 
squaws  and  four  dogs  for  one  pale-faced  woman,  and  refused  to  believe 
his  ears  when  the  officer  again  told  him  he  did  not  wish  to  trade. 

"  When  there  is  a  scarcity  of  fuel,  an  Indian  builds  a  small  fire  on  the 
ground,  and  sits  over  it  with  his  buffalo-robe  so  arranged  as  to  enclose 
both  himself  and  the  fire.  In  this  way  he  can  keep  warm  with  very  lit- 
tle outlay,  and  have  all  the  advantages  of  a  sweat-box  without  paying  for 


250 


THE  YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


TREATMENT  OF  THE  INDIANS. 


251 


it.  He  is  a  great  advocate  of  this  form  of  bath,  and  rarely  takes  any 
other.  It  is  a  remedy  for  many  diseases,  and  in  some  instances  a  good 
one." 

A  great  deal  has  been  written  abont  the  treatment  of  the  Indians,  and 
the  best  mode  of  civilizing  them.     There  is  no  space  in  the  limits  of 
tin's  book  to  go  into  a  discussion  of 
the  Indian  question  and  its  various 
bearings,  and  we  can  only  touch  on 
a  few  generalities. 

In  the  first  place,  it  is  asking  a 
greal  deal  of  the  Indian  to  demand 
that  he  shall  live  on  a  reservation 
and  adopt  our  habits  and  mode  of 
life.  He  has  been  a  nomad  since 
he  was  born,  and  his  ancestors  were 
nomads  before  him;  many  of  the 
Indian  traditions  are  opposed  to 
the  settlement  of  the  red  man  in 
any  one  place,  and  consequently  he 
revolts  at  the  idea  of  living  on  a 
reservation  and  tilling  the  soil. 

In  the  second  place,  when  we  have  overcome  his  scruples  by  argument, 
force,  or  persuasion,  and  placed  him  on  a  reservation,  we  do  not  keep  faith 
with  him.  When  the  land  where  he  lives  proves  to  have  any  value,  it  is 
seized  by  adventurers,  and  the  Indian  is  robbed  of  his  own.  Naturally 
he  resents  the  intrusion  and  murders  the  intruders,  and  in  so  doing  he 
indulges  in  the  barbarity  for  which  the  red  man  is  famous.  Then  retal- 
iation comes;  the  Indian  is  dispossessed  of  his  lands,  and  an  Indian  war  is 
the  result.  The  red  man  is  driven  farther  into  the  wilderness,  and  placed 
on  a  reservation  which  has  no  value  at  the  time;  but  as  soon  as  it  is 
wanted  by  any  one  the  old  scenes  are  repeated. 

In  more  than  half  the  troubles  we  have  had  with  the  Indians  of  the 
Far  West  the  white  man  has  been  the  origin  of  the  difficulty.  Dishonest 
Indian  agents,  lawless  frontiersmen,  miners,  and  adventurers  generally, 
have  led  us  into  wars  with  the  savages,  who  have  all  the  base  passions 
of  humanity,  and  are  capable  of  untold  barbarities  when  once  they  are 
roused. 

In  British  America  there  has  hardly  been  the  least  disturbance  with 
the  Indians  for  more  than  half  a  century.  The  authorities  who  deal  with 
them  are  careful  to  execute  every  promise,  whether  verbal  or  written, 


252  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

with  the  most  scrupulous  exactness ;  and  any  white  man  who  wrongs  an 
Indian  in  the  least  degree  is  liable  to  severe  punishment — and,  what  is 
more,  he  gets  it.  The  result  is,  the  Indian  has  no  cause  for  complaint, 
and  no  occasion  to  indulge  in  war. 

On  our  side  of  the  line  there  is  hardly  a  year  in  which  there  is  not 
an  Indian  outbreak  somewhere,  and  we  are  all  familiar  with  the  story  of 
Indian  cruelties.  It  should  proper!}'  be  called  a  white  man's  outbreak, 
as  the  cause  of  the  trouble  will  generally  be  found  in  the  violation  of 
a  treaty,  or  in  the  deliberate  robbery  of  the  Indian  by  an  enterprising 
pale-face. 

There  is  no  public  question  of  the  day  that  requires  more  careful  con- 
sideration of  both  its  sides  than  that  of  our  relations  with  the  Western 
Indians,  and  probably  no  question  that  has  been  considered  so  much  as 
this  from  only  one  side.  The  atrocities  of  the  Indians  are  all  related  to 
us,  and  they  are  numerous  enough  to  satisfy  the  most  blood-thirsty;  but 
the  original  causes  are  rarely  heard  of.  For  the  past  twenty-five  years 
our  Indian  Bureau  at  Washington  has  been  famous  for  its  iniquities. 
The  infection  has  spread  to  the  Far  West ;  and  when  the  rough  frontiers- 
men of  the  plains  and  mountains  see  the  example  which  the  Government 
gives  them,  it  is  no  wonder  that  they  are  somewhat  confused  concerning 
the  rights  of  property,  especially  when  the  property  they  covet  is  in  the 
possession  of  an  Indian. 


SEEING  A  MIRAGE.  253 


CHAPTER  XXL 

LEAVING   THE   BUFFALO   LAND. -ANTELOPE-HUNTING. 

rpJIE  chase  of  the  buffalo  was  abandoned,  as  everybody  had  had  all  he 
-*-  wanted  of  the-  sport.  The  country  to  the  south  was  reported  clear 
of  Indians  and  abounding  in  antelopes,  and  it  was  determined  to  have  a 
day  or  two  of  antelope-hunting,  and  meantime  to  work  in  the  direction 
of  the  Kansas  Pacific  Railway,  whence  some  members  of  the  party  would 
return  with  the  teams  to  the  point  of  departure,  while  others,  including 
the  Doctor  and  the  boys,  would  proceed  by  rail  to  Denver. 

Accordingly,  camp  was  broken  one  fine  morning,  and  the  march  re- 
sumed. An  hour  or  two  after  they  had  started  the  boys  saw  from  the 
crest  of  a  ridge  a  sight  that  astonished  them. 

As  they  looked  forward  they  saw  a  broad  lake,  with  several  islands  on 
which  trees  were  growing.  The  train  was  moving  toward  the  lake,  and 
both  Harry  and  George  wondered  how  they  would  cross  it,  as  there  was 
not  a  sign  of  a  ferry-boat  to  carry  them  over. 

They  questioned  the  Doctor  on  the  subject ;  the  latter  laughed,  and 
said  they  would  have  no  trouble  in  traversing  the  lake,  and  find  no  need 
of  boats  for  the  transit. 

Then  he  explained  that  what  they  saw  was  a  mirage — a  phenomenon 
well  known  to  sailors  and  to  travellers  over  deserts  and  other  plains  in 
different  parts  of  the  world.  The  cause  of  the  mirage,  he  said,  was  a 
matter  of  much  dispute  among  scientific  men  ;  some  claiming  that  it  was 
the  result  of  refraction,  and  others  of  reflection.  His  own  opinion  was 
that  it  was  caused  by  the  reflection  of  the  rays  of  light  on  a  stratum  of 
air  of  a  different  density  than  that  through  which  they  were  looking. 
Its  general  effect  was  to  create  the  appearance  of  ponds  and  forests  where 
none  existed,  and  sometimes  objects  below  the  horizon  were  brought  into 
view.  Particularly  was  this  the  case  at  sea,  where  ships  known  to  be 
beyond  the  line  of  vision  were  seen  sailing  in  the  clouds — sometimes  in 
their  proper  position,  and  sometimes  inverted.  Stories  of  phantom  ships 
doubtless  had  their  origin  in  the  mirage,  especially  as  it  was  the  habit  of 


254 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


ignorant  people  all  over  the  world  to  ascribe  to  supernatural  agency  any 
unusual  circumstance  that  was  beyond  their  comprehension. 


A    MIRAGE    ON    THE    PLAINS. 


While  they  were  talking  about  the  mirage,  they  were  steadily  ap- 
proaching the  supposed  lake.  It  receded  as  they  came  nearer,  and  finally 
it  vanished  altogether,  leaving  nothing  but  the  dry  plain,  similar  to  the 
one  they  had  been  traversing.  Harry  thought  it  must  be  a  very  tantaliz- 
ing spectacle  to  an  explorer,  as  it  would  lead  him  to  suppose  he  was  ap- 
proaching a  cool  retreat,  when  there  was  nothing  of  the  kind.  The  Doc- 
tor said  that  sometimes  when  a  party  of  men  was  crossing  the  plains  they 
found  themselves  reflected  in  the  mirage,  and  were  deceived  into  the  sup- 
position that  they  were  about  to  be  attacked.  On  one  occasion  an  ex- 
pedition was  delayed  in  its  movements  by  seeing  what  they  took  for  an 
armed  force  coming  to  meet  them. 

Where  they  camped  that  night,  they  had  a  high  wind  that  blew  down 
some  of  the  tents,  and  covered  the  wayfarers  with  heaps  of  dust.  One 
of  the  wagons  was  overturned,  owing  to  having  been  left  with  its  side 
to  the  wind,  after  most  of  its  load  was  -removed,  and  the  only  tents 
that  stood  without  injury  were  those  of  the  Sibley  pattern.  This  tent 


THE   SIBLEY  TENT. 


was  the  invention  of  Major  Sibley,  of  the  United  States  Army,  and  is 
fashioned  after  the  Indian  lodge.  It  is  conical,  and  has  a  broad  base,  so 
that  it  can  resist  the  wind,  and  the  pole  in  the  centre  can  be  made  of  iron, 
with  a  tripod  beneath.  A  fire  may  be  built  beneath  the  tripo'd  for  cook- 
ing or  heating  purposes,  and  the  top  can  be  opened,  so  as  to  give  good 
ventilation.  A  flap  over  the  top  gets  up  a  draught  with  the  wind,  and  this 
idea,  like  that  of  the  shape  of  the  tent,  was  borrowed  from  the  Indians. 
Our  friends  were  much  pleased  with  their  canvas, house,  and  voted  unani- 
mously that  it  was  the  best  thing  of  the  kind  they  had  seen.  The  one 
they  occupied  was  large  enough  to  accommodate  eight  or  ten  men  with 
ease,  and  the  Doctor  told  them  that  twelve  or  fourteen  could  find  suffi- 
cient space  therein  for  sleeping  purposes. 

They  were  a  sorry  -  looking  party  the  next  morning,  as  the  most  of 
them  had  been  without  sleep,  and  the  dust  had  covered  them  so  deeply 
that  it  was  not  easy  to  recognize  one  from  another.  But  all  were  dis- 
posed to  be  merry,  and  many  a  joke  was  cracked  over  the  breakfast,  which 
was  prepared  with  much  diffi- 
culty, owing  to  the  trouble 
of  keeping  the  fire  within 
bounds,  or  even  of  maintain- 
ing it  at  all.  Though  faces 
were  soiled,  the  appetites  were 
good,  and  no  one  had  even 
a  thought  of  complaining, 
much  less  of  expressing  him- 
self sorry  that  he  was  there. 

The  teller  of  the  brad-awl 
story  came  out  with  a  fresh 
narrative  this  morning  that 
set  everybody  in  a  roar. 

"  I  was  once  out,"  said  he, 
"on  the  head- waters  of  the 
Smoky  Hill  Kiver,  when  we 

had  a  wind  to  which  last  night  was  the  merest  puff.  Talk  of  blowing 
great  guns !  why  it  blew  a  whole  park  of  artillery  from  the  front  of  the 
military  post,  three  miles  away,  and  sent  the  cannon  through  the  air  as 
though  they. had  been  corn-stalks.  I  saw  one  of  'em  myself;  it  was  a 
12-pound  howitzer,  that  was  taken  clean  from  the  ground  and  carried 
two  miles  and  a  quarter,  and  a  part  of  the  way  it  went  through  the  tops 
of  some  cotton-wood  trees,  and  cut  'em  off  like  a  knife." 


THEIR    CANVAS    1IOD8K. 


25G 


THE    YOUXG   NIMRODS. 


"I  would  suppose,''  remarked  one  of  his  listeners,  "that  a  wind  strong 
enough  to  move  a  cannon  would  not  leave  much  of  a  tree  standing.  How 
was  that  ?" 

"  'Twasn't  none  of  my  business,"  was  the  reply.  "  The  tree  had  to 
take  care  of  itself. 

"  That  same  wind  tipped  over  onr  wagons,  and  actually  blew  the  tire 
from  one  of  the  wheels.  It  stripped  the  shoes  from  two-thirds  of  the 

mules,  and  one  shoe  was  picked  up 
fifty-nine  rods  from  where  the  mule 
was  picketed.  All  the  old  mules 
stood  with  their  heads  to  the  wind, 
but  the  young  ones  turned  tails  to 
it,  and  found  themselves  shaved  as 
clean  as  though  a  St.  Louis  barber 
had  gone  over  'era  with  a  razor. 
I  saw  it  with  my  own  eyes,  and  I 
measured  the  distance  that  the  shoes 
were  blown." 

"Wonder  it  didn't  blow  yon 
away  while  it  was  about  it,"  said 
another  of  his  hearers. 

"  I  held  on  to  the  ground,"  was 
the  reply,  "  and  I  held  on  hard,  yon 
bet.  A  good  deal  of  the  ground 
was  blown  off,  and  I've  heard  that 
a  man  who  had  a  ranch  on  Smoky 
Hill  Creek  of  three  or  fonr  hun- 
dred acres  found  his  whole  proper- 
ty— land,  buildings,  and  all — blown  clear  over  to  the  other  side  and  down 
on  another  man's  ranch.  They  had  a  lawsuit  to  settle  the  question  of 
title,  and  while  the  case  was  going  on  the  Court  wouldn't  let  either  of 
'em  occupy  the  property.  They  used  to  lean  up  against  a  post  and  sleep, 
as  neither  dared  to  lie  down  for  fear  the  other  would  go  and  squat  on  the 
land.  Neither  could  move  without  waking  the  other,  and  so  it  was  a  fair 
shake  all  around." 

The  wind  abated  as  the  sun  rose  in  the  sky,  and  by  eight  o'clock  it 
was  almost  a  calm. 

Some  hours  were  spent  in  repairing  damages  caused  by  the  wind,  and 
after  a  general  survey  it  was  found  nothing  serious  had  happened.  These 
winds  are  of  frequent  occurrence  on  the  plains,  and  blow  with  a  violence 


POST    LODGIXGS. 


EFFECTS  OF  A  STORM  ON  THE   PLAINS. 


257 


STAMPEDE    OF    HORSES    AND    MULES    IS    A    STORM. 

unknown  in  the  Eastern  States.  They  generally  come  from  the  north, 
and  are  severely  cold,  and  the  old  plainsmen  tell  frightful  stories  of  their 
effects.  The}7  are  most  to  be  dreaded  when  they  occur  in  winter,  as  they 
are  accompanied  by  snow,  and  cause  heavy  losses  of  stock.  Captain  Marcy 
once  encountered  one  of  these  storms  on  the  divide,  or  ridge,  between  the 
Platte  and  Arkansas  Rivers.  It  lasted  for  sixty  hours,  and  its  fury  was  so 
great  that  it  was  impossible  for  him  or  any  of  his  men  to  face  the  blast  of 
wind  and  snow,  A  drove  of  his  horses  and  mules  stampeded  during  the 
storm,  and  ran  fifty  miles  before  they  stopped.  Three  of  the  herdsmen 
tried  to  follow  them,  but  only  went  a  short  distance;  only  one  of  them 
found  his  way  back  to  camp,  and  that  after  great  suffering. 

A  scout  was  sent  out  to  ascertain  the  position  of  the  antelope  herds,  so 
that  no  time  should  be  lost  in  hunting  them  on  the  following  day.  It 
was  found  that  they  were  in  large  numbers  not  more  than  live  or  six 
miles  away,  and  during  the  evening  the  hunting-parties  were  arranged. 
The  boys  asked  if  they  would  chase  the  antelope  on  horseback  as  they 
had  chased  the  buffaloes,  and  were  rather  taken  aback  when  informed 
that  horses  were  of  very  little  use  in  hunting  this  swift-footed  animal. 

17 


258 


THE   YOUNG  NIMBODS. 


"  The  antelope,"  said  the  Doctor,  "is  one  of  the  swiftest  runners  on 
the  plains.  He  loves  the  open  country,  and  shuns  the  forest,  and  he  is 
very  particular  about  his  food.  His  scientific  name  is  Antilocapra  Amer- 
icana,  and  naturalists  have  had  some  trouble  in  classifying  him.  When 

he  was  first  discovered  by  Lewis  and 
Clarke  in  the  early  part  of  the  cen- 
tury, there  was  considerable  discus- 
sion as  to  his  proper  place.  He  is 
smaller  than  the  common  deer,  as 
he  rarely  weighs  more  than  seventy 
or  eighty  pounds,  and  is  not  above 
three  feet  high  at  the  shoulder. 
He  is  very  shy  of  the  presence  of 
man,  and  when  the  herds  are  graz- 
ing they  have  sentinels  stationed  on 
the  ridges  and  all  the  highest  points 
of  ground  in  the  vicinity  to  give 
notice  of  the  approach  of  danger. 
He  is  verjr  swift  of  foot,  and  can 
outstrip  the  most  powerful  horse, 
though  it  is  claimed  by  some  hunt- 
ers that  a  horse  has  more  endurance, 
and  can  run  down  an  antelope  in  a 
chase  of  six  or  eight  miles.  But  the 
wear  and  tear  of  the  horse  can  hard- 

DIL.IJI. 

ly  be  compensated  by  the  capture 

of  the  antelope,  as  he  is  not  a  very  valuable  commodity,  and  his  flesh  is 
liable  to  be  heated  and  rendered  useless  in  a  long  chase. 

"Young  antelopes  are  very  easily  domesticated,  and  in  a  few  days 
they  become  so  tame  as  to  be  constantly  in  the  way.  At  many  of  the 
farm-houses  you  will  find  them  kept  as  pets,  and  the  chances  are  even 
that  we  shall  have  one  or  more  of  them  in  camp  after  our  first  hunt. 
The  last  time  I  was  out  here  we  had  one  that  was  caught  by  a  hunter  and 
brought  into  carnp.  We  named  him  "Billy,"  and  he  soon  became  a  fa- 
vorite with  everybody.  He  stuck  to  the  camp,  and  followed  the  wagons 
on  the  inarch ;  and  when  we  came  in  sight  of  herds  of  antelope  he  stared 
at  them  in  a  vacant  sort  of  way,  and  did  not  show  the  least  desire  for 
joining  his  old  comrades.  Somehow  they  do  not  live  long  in  captivity, 
and  you  will  rarely  see  a  tame  antelope  more  than  a  year  old.  It  has  a 
mysterious  disease  that  kills  it  in  a  few  days,  whether  in  a  tame  or  wild 


CHASING   THE   ANTELOPE.  259 

state.  Sometimes  this  disease  takes  the  form  of  an  epidemic,  and  the 
whole  antelope  population  for  many  miles  will  be  swept  away.  A  few 
years  ago  there  was  an  epidemic  of  this  sort  that  was  estimated  to  have 
caused  the  deaths  of  fifty  thousand  antelopes  in  less  than  a  month. 

"  What  with  disease  and  the  rifle  of  the  hunters,  the  antelopes  are  rap- 
idly diminishing  in  numbers,  and  the  country  where  they  range  is  grow- 
ing smaller  every  year.  The  early  explorers  found  them  in  enormous 
herds,  and  sometimes  there  was  hardly  an  hour  of  the  day  when  ante- 
lopes were  not  in  sight. 

"  Of  late  years  it  has  become  the  fashion  to  chase  the  antelope  with 
dogs,  and  many  officers  of  the  army  and  farmers  living  on  the  plains 
keep  packs  of  hounds  trained  for  the  purpose.  The  best  dogs  for  this 
work  are  the  Scotch  deer-hounds,  but  only  a  few  of  them  have  thus  far 
been  imported.  A  good  hound  will  bring  down  an  antelope  in  a  run  of 
a  couple  of  miles,  provided  the  latter  has  not  too  much  start.  The  hunter 
can  follow  on  horseback,  and  if  he  is  well  mounted  he  will  not  be  very 
far  behind  at  the  death.  The  indications  are  that  as  time  goes  on  this 
sport  will  be  quite  fashionable,  as  it  is  gaining  ground  steadily,  and  some 
who  laughed  at  it  at  first  are  now  among  its  most  earnest  advocates." 

Our  friends  were  not  provided  with  dogs,  and  consequently  coursing 
was  out  of  the  question.  The  Doctor  announced  that  stalking  would  be 
the  order  of  the  hunt,  and  for  that  purpose  he  provided  himself  with  a 
short  stick  to  which  a  handkerchief  could  be  attached.  This,  in  addition 
to  his  rifle  and  ammunition,  was  all  the  equipment  he  carried. 

The  hunters  set  out  soon  after  breakfast,  and  rode  in  the  direction 
where  the  antelopes  were  reported  to  be  grazing.  They  circled  round  to 
leeward,  as  the  antelope  has  a  keen  nose  for  smells,  and  can  detect  the 
white  man  a  long  distance  off,  provided  the  wind  is  blowing  in  the  right 
direction.  The  antelope  has  three  protections — his  sharp  sight,  his  deli- 
cate nose,  and  his  swift  legs;  and  when  these  fail  he  has  a  woman's  argu- 
ment— tears.  The  antelope's  eye  is  large,  full,  and  lustrous;  and  his  gaze 
is  soft  as  that  of  a  young  girl.  When  he  is  wounded  or  suffering  he 
\veeps,  and  it  requires  a  man  of  strong  nerve  to  look  unmoved  upon  the 
dying  struggles  of  an  antelope,  or  his  agony  in  disease.  The  flow  of 
tears  is  copious,  and  there  is  something  very  human  about  the  appearance 
of  the  animal  when  calamity  has  overtaken  him. 

They  approached  a  ridge,  and  the  guide,  who  was  in  advance,  motion- 
ed them  to  stop.  They  dismounted,  and,  leaving  their  horses  in  charge 
of  a  couple  of  the  men,  the  hunters  crept  to  the  summit.  Peering  cau- 
tiously over,  the  boys  saw  something  that  was  decidedly  new  to  their  eyes. 


260 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


A    HERD    OF    AXTELOPES. 


In  an  undulating  valley,  broken  by  a  few  narrow  chasms,  a  herd  of 
antelopes  were  feeding,  and  quite  unconscious  that  anybody  was  observ- 
ing them.  There  were  hundreds  of  them :  Harry  thought  there  might 
be  thousands ;  and  while  some  nibbled  the  herbage,  others  stood  with 
their  noses  in  the  air,  and  had  evidently  satisfied  their  appetites.  Far  as 
our  friends  could  see  along  the  valley  the  herd  extended,  and  the  boys 
were  ready  to  believe  the  assertion  of  the  guide  that  there  was  "  no  end 
of  antelope"  in  the  neighborhood.  George  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that  each  antelope  had  hoisted  a  flag  of  truce,  and  evidently  wanted  to 
be  let  alone.  The  Doctor  explained  that  Nature  has  painted  the  rump  of 
the  antelope  white,  and  made  the  rest  of  the  body  a  reddish  gray.  The 
appearance  of  this  white  rump,  especially  when  the  animal  is  running, 
is  quite  comical,  as  it  suggests  the  waving  of  a  white  cloth  in  the  wind. 


FATAL  CURIOSITY  OF  THE   ANTELOPE. 


261 


The  hunters  inspected  the  herd  for  a  few  minutes,  and  then  scattered 
for  active  work.  Some  crept  along  the  ridge,  while  others  returned  to 
their  horses  and  rode  in  a  direction  parallel  to  the  position  of  the  herd. 
The  Doctor  and  the  boys  were  of  the  former  party,  and  they  moved  at 
least  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  where  they  first  looked  on  the  antelopes. 

The  Doctor  instructed  the  boys  to  stretch  themselves  on  the  ground 
and  lie  as  still  as  possible,  with  their  rifles  ready.  lie  took  a  position  a 
little  in  front  of  them,  and  then  fastened  his  handkerchief  to  the  stick 
and  fixed  it  in  the  ground.  It  waved  there  like  a  flag,  and  very  soon  it 
was  perceived  by  a  group  of  antelopes  that  were  feeding  a  few  hundred 
yards  away. 

The  antelope  has  a  great  deal  of  curiosity,  and  when  he  sees  a  strange 
object  his  first  impulse  is  to  investigate  it.  The  hunters  are  aware  of 
this  propensity,  and  many  a  ranger  of  the  plains  has  fallen  a  victim  to 
the  bullet  in  consequence  of  it. 

When  the  antelopes  saw  the  Doctor's  handkerchief  waving  in  the 
wind  they  stood  still  for  a  few  moments,  and  then  cautiously  approached 


CALLING   ANTELOPES. 


it.     They  circled  around  as  they  came  near,  and  took  exactly  the  position 
that  was  desired.     The  Doctor  whispered  to  the  boys  to  aim  at  the  ani- 
mals in  the  order  in  which  they  stood,  and  to  fire  the  moment  he  did  so. 
On  and  on  came  tl>e  deluded  beasts,  and  when  they  were  within  lees 


262  THE  YOUNG  NIMKODS. 

than  thirty  yards  the  Doctor  fired.  The  boys  followed  his  example,  and 
were  only  a  few  seconds  behind  him.  There  was  no  fear  that  the  ante- 
lopes would  run  away  in  this  brief  interval,  as  it  is  the  habit  of  most  ani- 
mals of  the  deer  family  to  stand  as  if  dazed  for  a  short  time  when  any- 
thing surprises  them.  An  expert  hunter  can  sometimes  bring  down  two 
or  three  of  them  before  the  herd  collects  its  senses  sufficiently  to  run 
out  of  danger.  When  it  has  once  taken  to  its  heels  there  is  no  use  in 
following. 

Each  of  the  three  shots  was  successful,  and  each  of  the  hunters 
brought  down  a  prize.  Two  of  the  antelopes  were  killed  instantly,  but 
the  third  was  not  dead  when  they  reached  him.  The  tears  flowed  from 
his  eyes,  and  the  boys  realized  what  had  been  told  them  of  the  necessity 
of  being  very  hard-hearted  when  looking  at  a  wounded  antelope. 

The  Doctor  drew  his  hunting-knife  and  cut  the  throats  of  the  ante- 
lopes, so  that  the  meat  should  be  properly  bled.  Leaving  the  animals 
where  they  had  fallen,  the  three  sportsmen  returned  to  their  horses  and 
gave  directions  for  bringing  in  their  game.  The  party  had  been  followed 
from  camp  by  one  of  the  drivers  with  a  couple  of  pack-mules,  and  in  a 
little  while  the  three  prizes  were  loaded  and  on  their  way  to  the  tents. 
Our  friends  rode  in  the  direction  that  the  other  hunters  had  taken,  and 
soon  heard  shots  resounding  along  the  valley.  A  little  later  they  met 
the  gentlemen  returning  to  camp,  and  found  they  had  been  successful  in 
shooting  half  a  dozen  antelopes  by  stationing  themselves  at  a  point  where 
the  herd  would  be  likely  to  pass  when  frightened,  and  then  sending  men 
around  to  make  an  alarm.  Another  hunter,  who  went  off  by  himself  to 
an  isolated  group,  wras  fortunate  enough  to  kill  a  tine  buck  by  stalking 
him  with  a  handkerchief  in  the  same  way  as  the  Doctor  had  done. 

There  was  an  abundance  of  venison  in  the  camp  that  evening,  and 
everybody  had  his  fill,  with  some  to  spare.  The  next  day  the  camp  was 
moved  to  the  southward,  and  more  antelopes  were  pursued ;  and  in  the 
afternoon  of  the  third  day  the  party  reached  the  line  of  railway  where 
the  hunting-expedition  was  to  end. 


ARRIVAL  AT  DENVER. 


CHAPTER   XXII. 

OVERLAND  TO  SAN  FRANCISCO.— VISIT  TO  THE  FARALLON  ISLANDS. 

rpHE  evening  was  spent  in  settling  the  accounts  of  the  expedition,  and 
-*-  in  preparing  for  the  separation  of  the  following  morning,  when  the 
express  train  would  arrive  on  its  westward  way.  There  were  many  re- 
grets at  the  necessity  for  breaking  up,  and  the  hope  -was  repeatedly  ex- 
pressed that  another  hunting-party  might  be  organized  in  the  future,  and 
contain  as  many  as  possible  of  those  who  had  just  finished  their  experi- 
ence of  the  buffalo  range. 

As  our  friends  stepped  on  board  the  train  Harry  acknowledged  to  a 
little  moisture  about  the  eyelids  as  the  result  of  a  farewell  hand-shake 
with  Captain  Bailey.  George  was  troubled  in  the  same  way  and  for 
the  same  reason ;  and  when  it  came  to  a  call  for  three  cheers  as  the  train 
moved  off,  the  youths  were  too  husky  to  give  the  proper  effect  to  their 
voices.  The  Doctor  was  likewise  indisposed  in  the  region  just  behind 
his  spectacles,  and  said  it  was  strange  that  the  glasses  had  suddenly  be- 
come dim. 

It  was  evening  when  they  reached  Denver.  The  Doctor  looked 
around  for.  the  landmarks  which  were  familiar  to  him  years  before,  but 
could  find  none.  He  had  seen  Denver  when  it  was  a  settlement  of  less 
than  four  thousand  inhabitants;  now  it  was  a  prosperous  city,  containing 
more  than  forty  thousand  people,  and  the  terminus  of  five  different  lines 
of  railway.  It  was  growing  rapidly,  and  the  old  prophecy  that  Denver 
would  one  day  become  the  metropolis  of  all  the  Rocky  Mountain  region 
seemed  to  be  fully  verified.  It  had  all  the  characteristics  of  a  busy  com- 
mercial centre,  and  was  daily  growing  in  wealth  and  importance. 

"What  a  pity,"  said  Harry,  the  morning  after  their  arrival,  "  that 
Lord  Byron  never  came  to  America !  If  he  had  done  so  he  would  have 
changed  some  of  his  lines." 

George  looked  up  inquiringly,  and  waited  for  Harry  to  explain. 

"  Don't  you  see  ?"  said  the  latter  ;  "  he  says  in  one  place, 

"  'A  thousand  years  scarce  serve  to  form  a  state.' 


261 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


A    TART    OF    DENVER. 

Evidently  he  never  heard  of  Colorado,  or  he  wouldn't  have  written  as 
he  did." ' 

"Good  reason  for  him  not  to  hear  of  it,"  responded  George,  "as  he 
died  long  and  long  before  there  was  a  white  man  living  in  Colorado." 

The  conversation  took  a  varied  turn  through  the  domain  of  poetic 
license  and  the  rapid  growth  of  civilization  in  Colorado  and  California. 
It  was  finally  interrupted  by  the  entrance  of  the  Doctor,  who  announced 
that  they  would  start  the  following  day  for  an  excursion  to  South  Park 
and  the  region  around  Pike's  Peak,  and  perhaps  would  indulge  in  what- 
ever hunting  the  country  afforded. 

An  hour  later  this  plan  of  campaign  was  completely  upset  by  the  re- 
ceipt of  a  despatch  from  San  Francisco.  A  council  of  war  was  held  at 
once ;  telegrams  were  flashed  to  New  York,  and  from  New  York  back 
to  Denver ;  then  a  despatch  was  hurried  to  San  Francisco ;  and  before 
night  it  was  arranged  that  the  Doctor  and  the  boys  would  take  the  next 
train  for  the  Pacific  coast,  and  leave  the  excursion  in  the  mountains  of 
Colorado  for  some  future  occasion. 

The  reason  for  this  change  was  contained  in  the  telegram  from  San 


FROM  DENVER  TO  SAN  FRANCISCO.  265 

Francisco,  which  was  an  invitation  for  the  three  adventurers  to  join  a 
party  about  leaving  for  a  tour  by  steamer  along  the  western  coast  of 
North  America.  The  opportunity  was  a  rare  one,  as  there  was  a  pros- 
pect of  visiting  places  quite  out  of  the  ordinary  routes  of  travel.  The 
telegraph  was  of  great  use  to  the  travellers  in  arranging  the  details  of 
their  trip,  as  it  enabled  them  to  consult  with  friends  in  New  York  and 
San  Francisco — all  within  a  few  hours,  and  to  settle  various  little  matters 
of  money  and  vacations  without  any  delay.  All  honor  to  the  telegraph 
for  the  advantages  it  has  conferred  on  the  human  race  in  the  rapid  trans- 
mission of  the  messages  of  business  or  friendship,  of  diplomacy  or  calam- 
ity, in  this  latter  half  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

And  so  they  went  westward,  and  did  not  halt  till  they  reached  San 
Francisco.  If  any  of  our  readers  wish  to  know  about  a  journey  overland 
by  the  Pacific  Railway,  they  are  respectfully  referred  elsewhere.* 

At  the  station  at  Oakland,  on  the  opposite  shore  of  the  bay  from  San 
Franciseo,  they  were  met  by  Major  Barton,  an  old  friend  of  the  Doctor. 
The  boys  were  introduced  to  the  major,  and  then  the  party  went  on 


ALKALI    DESKKT,  CEXTKAL    PACIFIC    KAIL 


board  the  magnificent  ferry-boat  that  was  to  convey  them  to  the  great 
city  by  the  Western  Ocean.  During  the  passage  across  the  bay  the  major 
explained  their  proposed  trip,  and  said  they  had  arrived  just  in  time. 

"You  must  defer  any  investigation  of  California  and  its  wonders  till 
your  return  from  our  cruise,"  he  continued,  "as  we  are  off  to-morrow. 

*  "The  Boy  Travellers  in  the  Fur  East:  Adventures  of  Two  Youths  in  n  Journey  to  Jnpnn 
and  Cliinn."     By  Thomas  W.  Knox,  Hnrper  &  Brothers,  New  York,  18SO. 


2G6  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

We  will  stop  to-night  at  the  Palace  Hotel — the  largest  and  finest  hotel 
on  the  face  of  the  earth  —  and  to -morrow  morning  we  go  on  board  a 
little  steamer  that  will  take  us  to  the  Farallon  Islands.  We  will  spend 
a  few  hours  there,  and  then  return  to  San  Francisco,  to  go  at  once  on  the 
ship  that  is  to  carry  us  along  the  coast. 

"  You  need  no  preparation  of  any  kind,  as  the  ship  is  fully  supplied 
with  everything  except  your  personal  baggage.  Your  trunks  can  go  on 
board  at  once,  and  you  only  need  your  satchels  for  the  night  in  the  city 
and  the  trip  to  the  Farallones." 

They  found  the  Palace  Hotel  a  wonderful  structure,  and  were  fully 
prepared  to  believe  it  the  grandest  thing  of  the  kind  yet  constructed. 
Early  in  the  morning  they  were  out  of  bed,  in  compliance  with  the  stip- 
ulations of  the  major ;  and  before  eight  o'clock  the  little  steamer  was 
carrying  them  through  the  Golden  Gate  and  out  on  the  broad  Pacific. 
Then  the  boys  had  time  to  look  around  them  and  ask  what  the  Farallon 
Islands  were. 

"The  Farallon  Islands,"  said  Major  Barton,  "are  a  little  cluster  of 
rocks  about  twenty-five  miles  from  the  entrance  of  the  bay  of  San  Fran- 
cisco. There  are  six  of  them  altogether,  and  the  largest  is  about  a  mile 
long,  and  three  hundred  and  forty  feet  high.  Their  only  human  inhabi- 
tants are  the  persons  connected  with  the  light-house.  The  islands  lie  in 
the  track  of  ships  entering  or  leaving  the  harbor  of  San  Francisco,  and 
for  their  benefit  the  government  maintains  a  light-house  of  the  first  class. 
This  steamer  is  bound  there  with  supplies  for  the  light-keepers,  and  the 
Collector  of  the  Port  has  kindly  consented  to  let  us  go  along. 

"But  if  there  are  few  human  inhabitants  there,"  he  continued,  "there 
is  no  lack  of  other  animated  life.  There  are  thousands  of  sea-lions  that 
make  their  home  there,  and  there  are  sea-birds  in  countless  numbers  ;  and 
there  are  lots  of  rabbits  on  the  largest  island,  which  are  descended  from 
a  few  pairs  that  an  enterprising  Californian  took  there  some  years  ago  in 
the  expectation  that  he  would  be  able  to  supply  the  San  Francisco  market 
from  their  increase.  The  scheme  was  not  altogether  what  he  anticipated, 
and  he  has  not  made  a  fortune  by  the  operation.  The  eggs  of  the  sea- 
birds  are  far  more  valuable  than  the  rabbits,  and  there  is  a  company  that 
supplies  San  Francisco  with  all  the  eggs  it  can  use,  and  more  too,  in  the 
season  when  the  birds  are  laying." 

As  they  approached  the  islands,  the  bo}rs  could  see  the  birds  sitting 
on  the  rocks  or  flying  through  the  air  in  great  numbers.  The  major  ex- 
plained that  there  were  four  varieties  of  birds  on  the  islands;  they  were 
called  shags,  gulls,  murres,  and  sea-parrots.  Only  the  eggs  of  the  gulls 


PECULIARITIES  OF  FARALLON  EGGS. 


267 


and  murres  were  fit  for  food.  The  collectors  were  in  the  habit  of  de- 
stroying those  of  the  shags  and  sea-parrots,  in  order  to  keep  down  their 
numbers  as  much  as  possible,  and  make  room  for  the  others.  The  eggs 
are  largely  used  in  San  Francisco  for  making  omelets,  custards,  and  simi- 
lar dishes,  but  they  are  not  served  up  in  the  ordinary  ways  in  which  eggs 
come  to  the  table.  When  first  laid  they  have  no  disagreeable  flavor,  but 
after  a  few  days  the  fishy  taste  for  which  they  are  famous  asserts  itself. 

The  major  further  explained  that  the  business  of  egg-hunting  on  the 
Farallones  had  been  more  profitable  in  the  early  da\?s  than  it  is  at  present. 


SEA-BIRDS    ON    THE    FARALLON    ISLANDS. 


Eggs  were  worth  a  dollar  a  dozen  for  some  time  after  the  discovery  of 
gold  in  California,  and  on  one  occasion  a  boat  brought  in  one  thousand 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


dozen  of  sea-birds'  eggs  and  sold  them  all  at  that  price.  The  islands  were 
considered  so  valuable  that  an  egg  war  broke  out,  and  the  men  who  went 
there  used  to  have  serious  fights  for  the  right  to  carry  on  their  enterprise. 
In  one  of  these  fights  two  or  three  men  were  killed,  and  the  government 
authorities  were  obliged  to  interfere  to  preserve  order.  In  course  of  time 
a  company  was  formed  that  bought  out  all  rival  claimants,  and  of  late 
years  the  egg-hunters  have  no  enemies  more  dangerous  than  birds  to  con- 
tend with. 

They  had  some  difficulty  in  landing,  as  the  water  was  rough  and  the 
rocky  shore  was  not  a  welcome  place  for  a  boat;  but  they  got  safely  on 

land,  where  the  boys  had  a  chance 
to  see  the  sea-birds  at  home,  and  to 
study  their  mode  of  life. 

The  major  called  their  attention 
to  the  nest  of  a  gull,  which  was  a 
very  rude  affair,  consisting  of  a  few 
sticks  and  sea-weeds  pitched  togeth- 
er in  a  way  that  did  not  reflect  cred- 
itably on  the  builder.  It  contained  a 
couple  of  young  chicks  that  had  re- 
cently come  to  light,  and  were  look- 
ing wonderingly  at  a  third,  which 
was  just  emerging  from  its  shell. 

Harry  asked  what  kind  of  a  nest 
was  built  by  the  murre,  and  was 
rather  taken  aback  when  told  that  the  murre  did  not  trouble  itself  to 
make  a  nest,  but  deposited  its  eggs  on  the  bare  rock,  wherever  it  could 
find  a  place.  The  birds  seek  out  the  wildest  part  of  the  rocks  for  deposit- 
ing their  eggs,  and  the  hunters  do  not  have  an  easy  time  in  getting  there. 
During  the  season  they  go  over  the  ground  every  morning,  gathering  the 
fresh  eggs  and  clearing  away  the  remains  of  broken  or  decayed  ones. 
The  boys  wanted  to  join  the  egg-hunters,  but  changed  their  minds  when 
the  major  gave  them  some  details  of  the  work. 

"In  the  first  place,"  said  he,  "you  have  the  roughest  kind  of  climbing 
over  the  rocks,  and  would  return  with  your  limbs  aching  from  the  fatigue 
of  the  excursion.  The  birds  are  not  willing  to  surrender  their  eggs  to 
a  stranger  to  whom  they  have  had  no  introduction,  and  they  generally 
make  it  decidedly  unpleasant  for  him.  The  gull  remains  on  her  nest  till 
she  is  pushed  or  driven  otf,  and  she  can  bite  very  sharply,  as  many  an 
egg-hunter  will  testify.  The  murre  does  not  bite,  but  she  stays  on  her 


NEST    OF    A    GULL. 


FIGHTING  WITH  THE  SEA-BIRDS. 


269 


nest  till  the  hunter  is  within  a  few 
feet  of  her ;  then  she  screams  and 
rises  into  the  air,  and  the  scream 
generally  brings  up  hundreds  or 
thousands  of  others.  They  fly 
around  the  hunter  and  come  dis- 
agreeably near  to  his  face,  and, 
while  they  are  above  him,  he  gets 
a  drenching  of  fresh  and  dry  guano 
that  is  anything  but  pleasant. 

"  The  gulls  get  through  breeding  much  sooner  than  the  other  birds, 
and  then  they  devote  themselves  to  eating  up  the  eggs  of  their  rivals. 
They  follow  closely  on  the  heels  of  an  egger,  and  sometimes  when  he  has 
uncovered  a  nest  they  rush  in  and  seize  the  eggs  while  he  has  his  hand 
extended  to  gather  them.  When  a  gull  takes  an  egg  in  this  way,  she 


U 


imtD-EGGING    UXDEK    DIFFICULTIES. 


270  THE   YOUNG  NIMEODS. 

flies  upward,  and  as  she  does  so  she  breaks  the  shell,  devours  what  she 
can  catch  in  her  beak  at  a  gulp,  and  allows  the  rest  of  the  contents  to  fall 
upon  the  man  beneath.  The  free  bath  of  raw  eggs  does  not  improve  his 
appearance  nor  his  temper,  and  some  of  the  hunters  occasionally  indulge 
in  strong  language  at  the  gulls.  The  latter  do  not  mind  it  at  all,  but  go 
on  with  their  amusement  as  though  nothing  had  happened. 

"And  furthermore  there  are  many  places  so  rough  that  it  is  impossi- 
ble to  carry  a  basket,  and  the  hunter  must  stow  the  eggs  in  the  front  of 
his  shirt  and  bring  them  down  to  the  points  where  the  baskets  can  be 
used.  It  occasionally  happens  that  a  man  with  a  shirt  full  of  eggs  slips 
on  the  rocks  and  breaks  the  shells ;  not  only  has  his  labor  been  in  vain, 
but  he  is  daubed  with  the  mess  till  he  looks  as  though  he  was  dressed  for 
a  masquerade  in  the  character  of  '  the  animated  omelet.'  After  what  you 
have  heard,  perhaps  you  will  not  be  anxious  to  go  on  an  excursion  with  the 
gatherers  of  eggs ;  if  you  are,  you  can  be  accommodated,  as  the  manager 
of  the  business  is  an  old  friend  of  mine." 

Both  Harry  and  George  were  quite  willing  to  look  on  from  a  distance, 
and  learn  from  others  about  the  practical  work  of  gathering  eggs. 

By  the  time  this  conversation  had  ended,  the  party  reached  the  resi- 
dence of  the  eggers — a  few  rude  shanties  not  far  from  the  landing-place. 
In  front  of  the  buildings  there  were  rows  on  rows  of  baskets  filled  with 
eggs,  and  ready  for  transportation  to  San  Francisco.  Some  of  the  men 
had  just  come  in  from  their  .work,  while  others  were  out  on  the  rocks  en- 
gaged in  the  customary  fights  with  the  birds,  and  getting  their  allowance 
of  unsavory  drenchings  from  the  winged  inhabitants  of  the  islands. 

In  response  to  their  questions  the  boys  learned  that  there  were  fifteen 
men  altogether  engaged  in  gathering  eggs,  aud  in  some  years  they  num- 
bered eighteen  or  twenty.  The  egg  season  lasts  about  two  months,  and 
the  average  harvest  is  from  fifteen  to  seventeen  thousand  dozens.  As 
many  as  thirty  thousand  dozens  were  gathered  in  some  of  the  earlier 
years  of  the  business,  when  there  were  no  restrictions ;  but  it  was  found 
that  this  wholesale  gathering  had  a  tendency  to  depopulate  the  islands, 
aud  when  the  present  company  came  into  peaceful  occupation  they 
adopted  a  policy  of  preservation.  Certain  places  are  reserved  for  breed- 
ing purposes,  and  a  peculiar  habit  of  the  murre  is  employed  to  advantage. 

George  asked  what  this  habit  was,  and  learned  in  reply  that  the  murre, 
when,  undisturbed,  does  not  lay  more  than  two  eggs  in  a  season  ;  but  if 
these  are  taken  away  it  lays  others,  and  when  these  are  removed  it  repeats 
the  process.  In  this  way  it  can  be  Tobbed  of  four  or  six  eggs  in  a  season 
without  any  interference  of  its  breeding  capacities,  provided  it  is  allowed 


BIRDS  AND  SEA-LIONS:  271 

to  hatch  the  last  of  its  production.  Consequently,  the  hunters  cease  their 
operations  a  little  before  the  close  of  the  season,  so  that  the  inurre  can 
rear  its  family.  It  is  a  faithful  parent,  and  the  male  bird  takes  his  share 
of  the  labor  of  sitting  on  the  nest ;  and  when  the  female  is  there,  her 
partner  generally  stays  near,  in  order  to  keep  away  the  predatory  gulls. 

The  flesh  of  the  inurre  is  not  fit  to  eat,  on  account  of  its  fishy  taste  and 
its  great  toughness.  It  is  about  the  size  of  a  small  duck,  but  it  produces 
an  egg  as  heavy  as  that  of  a  goose.  The  eggs  are  curiously  spotted,  and 
there  are  no  two  that  are  spotted  just  alike. 

The  high  prices  that  prevailed  in  the  early  days  of  California  are  no 
longer  obtained.  The  eggs  from  the  Farallon  Islands  rarely  realize  more 
than  twenty-five  cents  a  dozen  to  the  hunters,  and  consequently  the  reve- 
nue from  them  is  not  a  large  one.  The  expense  of  boats  and  men  must 
be  deducted,  and  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the  Farallon  Islands  are  not  the 
mine  of  wealth  which  many  persons  might  suppose. 

When  their  investigation  of  the  birds  was  concluded,  the  boys  turned 
their  attention  to  the  more  ponderous  inhabitants,  which  were  known  as 
sea-lions.  The  Doctor  explained  that  they  belonged  to  the  seal  family, 
but  were  of  no  value  as  articles  of  commerce.  Their  skins  were  covered 
with  coarse  hair  that  did  not  serve  any  useful  purpose,  and  the  result  was 
that  the  sea-lion  was  practically  undisturbed.  The  foreman  of  the  egg 
establishment  said  they  occasionally  shot  one  of  the  monsters  to  get  the 
oil  for  their  lamps,  and  once  in  a  while  they  captured  one  alive  by  throw- 
ing a  lasso  around  him,  and  then  plunging  him  into  a  tank  that  was  ready 
to  receive  him.  In  this  way  he  could  be  carried  to  San  Francisco,  where 
he  soon  learned  the  ways  of  civilization,  and  in  a  short  time  seemed  to 
forget  all  about  his  wild  life  on  the  rocks  and  in  the  water. 

There  were  thousands  of  sea-lions  in  sight  when  the  boys  visited  the 
island,  and  they  showed  how  little  was  their  fear  of  man  by  allowing  the 
party  to  approach  quite  near  them.  Some  of  them  were  estimated  to 
weio-h  from  fifteen  hundred  to  two  thousand  pounds,  and  they  looked  not 
unlike  great  oxen  that  had  been  deprived  of  their  hind  legs.  They  wrig- 
gled their  way  around  on  the  rocks,  and  pushed  each  other  aside  with  a 
rudeness  that  indicated  an  ignorance  of  the  ways  of  polite  society.  The 
stronger  insisted  on  the  right  of  way,  without  the  least  regard  to  the  feel- 
ings of  the  rest ;  and  when  a  small  seal  had  secured  a  comfortable  place 
on  the  rocks,  he  was  ousted  by  the  first  big  fellow  that  came  along.  They 
kept  up  a  continual  bellowing,  and  the  major  said  that  in  times  past  this 
bellowing  served  a  useful  purpose  in  warning  ships  that  they  were  ap- 
proaching the  Farallones. 


272 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


In  the  water  the  huge  fellows  were  far  more  graceful  than  on  the 
rocks.  They  swim  rapidly,  and  dive  to  great  depths  in  pursuit  of  the 
fish  that  form  their  food  ;  and  when  once  they  get  sight  of  a  fish  he  must 
move  at  a  lively  gait  to  escape  them.  Hundreds  of  them  were  playing 
in  the  breakers  in  front  of  where  our  friends  were  standing,  and  the  boys 


HOW   THE   SEA-LIONS  ENJOY  THEMSELVES. 


273 


thought  they  had  never  seen  any  motions  more  graceful  than  those  of  a 
swimming  sea-lion.  The  major  said  that  the  heavier  the  surf  the  more 
did  these  amphibious  creatures  appear  to  enjoy  it,  and  sometimes  they  re- 
mained for  hours  in  the  breakers,  rising  on  the  crest  of  the  waves,  and 
then  diving  below,  just  as  it  seemed  impossible  for  them  to  avoid  being 
dashed  on  the  sharp  rocks. 

The  whistle  sounded  to  indicate  that  the  landing  of  supplies  for  the 
light-house  had  been  completed,  and  the  steamer  was  ready  to  return  to 
San  Francisco.  In  a  little  while  the  boys  were  again  on  board  and  head- 
ing for  the  Golden  Gate,  well  pleased  with  their  visit  to  the  birds  and 
sea-lions  of  the  Farallon  Islands. 


LIGHT-HOUSE    ON    THE    FARALLON    I8L 
18 


THE   YOUNG   NIMKODS. 


CHAPTER   XXIII. 

A  VOYAGE  TO  THE  NORTH  PACIFIC.— HUNTING  THE  FUR  SEAL. 

OX  their  return  to  San  Francisco,  ohr  friends  went  directly  on  board 
the  steamer  Charles  M,  Scammon,  which  was  to  be  their  home  during 
their  cruise  along  the  coast.  She  was  generally  known  as  the  Scammon, 
and  was  named  after  a  gentleman  who  has  had  a  long  and  varied  experi- 
ence on  the  Pacific  Ocean  in  command  of  various  ships,  and  is  the  author 
of  an  interesting  work  on  the  mammals  of  the  west  coast  of  North  Amer- 
ica. The  boys  found  her  a  very  comfortable  vessel  of  about  a  thousand 
tons'  burden,  and  admirably  adapted  to  the  business  in  which  she  was  en- 
gaged. 

They  learned,  after  going  on  board,  that  they  were  the  guests  of  the 
Alaska  Commercial  Company,  which  has  a  lease  of  the  fur-seal  islands  of 
the  North  Pacific.  The  steamer  was  owned  by  the  Company,  and  her 
special  mission  was  to  carry  supplies  to  the  islands  and  bring  away  the 
captured  seal-skins. 

She  left  San  Francisco  at  daylight  on  the  following  morning,  and  by 
the  time  the  sun  and  the  boys  were  up  she  was  well  outside  the  Golden 
Gate,  and  had  turned  her  prow  to  the  northward.  The  day  was  delight- 
ful, the  sky  being  without  a  cloud,  and  the  air  of  that  agreeable  tempera- 
ture that  makes  it  neither  too  hot  nor  too  cold.  Unfortunately  for  their 
rate  of  progress,  the  wind  was  directly  in  their  faces,  and  the  captain  of 
the  Scmnmon  told  them  that  the  prevailing  wind  on  the  coast  during  the 
summer  is  from  the  north.  "When  we  come  back,"  said  he,  "we  will 
get  along  fast  enough;  but  on  the  upward  trip  we  must  have  a  great  deal 
of  patience  and  coal.  Steamers  will  sometimes  be  four  days  going  from 
the  Golden  Gate  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  Eiver,  while  they  make 
the  return  trip  in  two." 

Nothing  of  special  importance  occurred  during  the  voyage.  The 
steamer  held  her  course  so  that  she  was  generally  in  sight  of  land,  and 
at  times  she  ran  among  the  islands,  and  seemed  to  be  in  an  inland  lake. 
She  stopped  a  few  hours  at  Victoria,  in  Vancouver's  Island,  and  again  at 


VIEW   OF  SITKA. 


!>75 


276  THE    YOUNG   X1MRODS. 

Sitka,  the  capital  of  what  was  once  the  Russian  Territory  of  Alaska,  but 
was  transferred  several  years  ago  to  the  United  States. 

It  was  raining  when  they  reached  the  latter  point,  and  for  their  conso- 
lation the  boys  were  told  that  Sitka  has  the  reputation  of  being  one  of 
the  most  rainy  places  in  the  world.  Directly  back  of  the  town  is  Mount 
Edgecumbe,  an  extinct  volcano,  nearly  eight  thousand  feet  high,  but  the 
iclouds  and  fogs  hang  round  it  so  much  that  the  summit  is  rarely  visible. 
The  town  stands  on  a  narrow  strip  of  lowland  at  the  base  of  this  moun- 
tain, and  the  most  prominent  building  in  it  is  the  military  head-quarters, 
formerly  the  residence  of  the  Russian  governor.  It  stands  on  a  rocky 
hill,  and  has  a  flight  of  steps  leading  up  to  it.  To  the  right  and  left  of 
the  hill  are  the  houses  of  the  residents,  and  there  is  a  large  church  after 
the  Russian  model,  with  its  roof  and  spires  painted  a  bright  green.  The 
Russian  Fur  Company  used  to  have  its  principal  depots  at  Sitka,  and 
sometimes  had  a  million  dollars1  worth  of  furs  accumulated  there  awaiting 
transportation  to  Europe. 

On  the  way  northward  from  Sitka,  the  boys  learned  a  good  deal  about 
the  Pribylov  Islands,  where  they  were  bound,  and  by  the  time  the  islands 
were  reported  in  sight  they  had  filled  their  note-books  with  a  store  of 
information  more  or  less  useful.  From  their  notes  we  will  quote  the  fol- 
lowing: 

"The  Pribylov  Islands  are  four  in  number,  and  their  united  area  is 
not  more  than  sixty  square  miles.  They  are  useless  for  any  purposes  of 
agriculture,  and  their  only  importance  is  in  the  large  yield  of  fur-bearing 
seal.  They  return  a  revenue  to  the  United  States  Government  of  three 
hundred  thousand  dollars  annually,  and  the  Company  that  has  the  lease  of 
the  islands  is  supposed  to  be  making  a  good  profit  out  of  the  business. 
Five  millions  of  seals  go  there  every  year,  and  by  the  terms  of  the  lease 
the  number  to  be  killed  is  restricted  to  one  hundred  thousand.  The  lease 
was  given  in  1870  for  a  term  of  twenty  years,  and  is  liable  to  be  forfeited 
if  any  of  its  provisions  are  violated. 

"  The  most  important  of  the  seal  islands  are  St.  Paul  and  St.  George, 
and  of  these  the  former  is  of  much  the  greater  consequence,  as  it  is  vis- 
ited by  nearly  if  not  quite  twenty  times  as  many  seals  as  St.  George. 
They  are  the  only  seal  islands  worth  mentioning  in  the  world.  The  Rus- 
sians found  out  their  value  a  hundred  years  ago,  and  by  a  careful  system 
of  preservation  they  prevented  the  destruction  of  the  important  business 
of  sending  seal-skins  to  market.  There  are  several  seal  islands  in  the 
South  Pacific,  but  they  were  entirely  depopulated  through  the  greediness 
of  the  men  who  visited  them,  twenty  or  thirty  years  ago.  One  hunter 


THE   PRIBYLOV   ISLANDS. 


277 


boasted  that  lie  did  not  allow  a  single  seal  to  escape  from  an  island  he 
visited,  but  slaughtered  old  and  young  without  the  least  regard  for  the 
future.  There  were  fears  that  the  Pribylov  Islands  would  be  treated  in 
the  same  way  when  the  territory  was  transferred  to  the  United  States  by 
Russia,  but  the  prompt  action  of  the  Government  prevented  such  a  ca- 
lamity. 

"  The  islands  were  discovered  and  occupied  by  the  Russians  in  1786, 
and  a  colony  of  one  hundred  persons  was  placed  there.     The  descendants 


A    SEAL    FAMILY    AT    HOM  B. 


of  these  colonists  arc  living  on  the  islands  to-day,  and  no  others  are  allow- 
ed to  settle  there.  The  population  is  something  less  than  three  hundred 
men,  women,  and  children,  and  they  have  the  exclusive  privilege  of  kill- 


278  THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

ing  and  skinning  the  seals.  The  Company  pays  them  forty  cents  for  cacli 
skin,  and  as  the  product  is  a  hundred  thousand,  the  annual  income  of  this 
village  amounts  to  forty  thousand  dollars.  They  buy  what  they  want  in 
the  stores  of  the  Company  at  the  wholesale  prices  of  the  San  Francisco 
market,  and  indulge  in  a  goodly  number  of  luxuries.  By  the  terms  of 
the  lease,  and  also  for  reasons  of  policy,  the  Company  does  not  permit  the 
sale  of  intoxicating  liquors,  and  thus  manages  to  maintain  good  order  in 
the  little  community.  The  colonists  are  natives  of  the  Aleutian  Islands, 
and  devout  members  of  the  Greek  Church.  They  are  a  simple-minded 
and  docile  people;  and  as  long  as  their  tendency  to  intemperance  is  held 
in  check,  they  are  eminently  peaceable  and  orderly.  They  are  supervised 
by  the  Company's  agents,  and  have  their  priests,  who  look  after  their 
spiritual  wants." 

In  due  time  the  Scammon  reached  St.  Paul's  Island,  and  the  boys 
went  ashore.  What  they  saw  and  did  while  there  we  will  let  them  tell 
in  their  own  words : 

"This  is  the  funniest  place  you  ever  saw:  acres  and  acres  covered  so 
thick  with  seals  that  the  ground  and  rocks  are  black  with  them ;  and  then 
they  don't  run  away  at  sight  of  man,  as  nearly  every  other  wild  animal 
does,  but  they  stand  or  sit  and  look  at  you  while  you  walk  within  two  or 
three  feet  of  them.  We  have  been  out  among  them  with  the  agent  of 
the  Company,  and  they  opened  a  little  lane  for  us  to  go  through,  and  then 
closed  it  up  behind  us;  and  there  were  thousands  and  thousands  of  them 
— fifty  thousand  at  least. 

"This  is  the  way  the  seals  live:  When  the  snow  and  ice  disappear — 
about  the  beginning  of  May — the  first  of  the  seals  come  here.  They  are 
the  bulls,  or  full-grown  males,  and  they  immediately  proceed  to  pick  out 
the  places  they  are  to  Ifve  on.  Each  seal  takes  a  lot  about  ten  feet 
square,  and  when  he  has  chosen  it  he  never  leaves  it  till  the  end  of  the 
season — about  three  months.  A  curious  circumstance  is,  that  he  takes  no 
food  or  water  in  all  that  time,  and  how  he  manages  to  live  is  a  puzzle  to 
most  people. 

"  The  females  do  not  come  till  after  the  first  of  June,  so  that  the 
males  are  there  for  more  than  a  month  quite  by  themselves.  They  p:ir-s 
the  time  in  fearful  fights  and  making  a  great  noise,  and  even  after  they 
are  joined  by  their  mates  they  have  a  good  many  battles.  They  weigh 
from  three  to  five  hundred  pounds  apiece,  and  therefore  a  fight  between 
a  pair  of  them  is  no  small  affair.  We  saw  one  of  these  combats  while 
we  were  out  on  our  first  walk,  and  the  way  the  two  champions  tore  each 
other  with  their  teeth,  and  struggled  among  the  rocks,  was  enough  to  con- 


A   FIGHT   AMONG   THE   SKALS. 


110H1'    IfhTWKKN    TWO    SKA  1,8. 


vince  ns  tliat  they  were  in  earnest;  and  we  are  told  that  they  are  in  real 
dead  earnest,  for  a  good  many  of  the  seals  are  killed  in  these  battles.  A 
seal  will  die  rather  than  leave  the  spot  lie  has  picked  out  for  his  home: 
and  if  he  thinks  another  is  trying  to  intrude  he  docs  not  wait  for  an  invi- 
tation, but  pitches  in  at  once. 

"  The  old  seals  take  full  possession  of  the  ground  where  the  females 
expect  to  come,  and  they  drive  the  young  ones  off  by  themselves.  The 
young  fellows  form  a  colony  of  their  own,  and  do  not  quarrel  after  the 
fashion  of  their  elders.  It  was  among  these  that  we  took  our  walk,  and 
not  in  the  family  quarters,  as  it  is  dangerous  to  venture  where  the  old 
bulls  are.  A  gentleman  of  our  party,  Doctor  Tonner,  went  rather  nearer 
than  was  agreeable  to  the  head  of  a  family,  and  the  latter  chased  him.  It 
was  laughable  to  see  the  doctor  running  over  the  rocks  and  slipping,  while 
the  seal  was  after  him,  and  bouncing  along  by  short  jumps.  We  threw 
stones  at  the  seal,  and  attracted  his  attention  long  enough  to  give  the  doc- 
tor a  chance  to  get  away.  If  he  had  been  overtaken  the  consequences 
might  have  been  serious,  as  these  seals  can  inflict  severe  wounds  with  their 
teeth,  and  have  been  known  to  bite  off  a  man's  arm  in  their  rage. 


280 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


"The  'rookeries'  and  'hauling -grounds'  extend  about  twenty  miles 
along  the  beach  of  St.  Paul's  Island  ;  the  former  name  is  applied  to  the 
region  where  the  families  are,  and  the  latter  to  the  place  where  the  young 
fellows  live  by  themselves.  The  rookeries  are  not  disturbed  by  the  hunt- 
ers, partly  for  the  reason  that  the  fur  of  the  old  fellows  is  not  so  good  as 


STARTING    THE    DRIVE    FROM    THE    HAULING-GUOUNDS. 

that  of  the  young  ones,  but  mainly  because  it  is  not  desirable  to  diminish 
the  number  of  breeding  seals.  It  is  the  rule  to  kill  no  seal  under  one 
year  of  age  nor  over  six,  and  by  adhering  to  it  the  number  is  kept  good 
from  year  to  year. 

"  We  went  to  the  hauling-grounds  to  see  how  they  capture  the  seals, 
and  found  that  it  was  very  much  like  capturing  a  flock  of  sheep.  The 
natives  went  in  among  them  and  selected  two  or  three  thousand  males 
between  two  and  four  years  old,  just  as  a  butcher  selects,  from  a  drove  of 
cattle;  then  they  started  them  overland  to  the  slaughtering-ground,  which 
is  close  by  the  village,  and  in  front  of  the  houses  where  the  skins  are  salted 
and  made  ready  for  shipment.  The  men  got  between  the  seals  and  the 
beach,  and  by  shouting  and  waving  their  hands  induced  the  animals  to 
move  on. 


HOW    SEALS   ARE   DRIVEN. 


281 


"  They  must  drive  the  seals  very  slowly,  as  the  least  exertion  heats 
them,  and  spoils  the  skins  so  that  the  hair  falls  off.  The  rule  is  not  to 
make  them  go  more  than  half  a  mile  an  hour,  unless  the  weather  is  very 
cold,  and  even  then  a  good  many  are  lost  by  overheating.  The  seal  ap- 
pears to  be  a  very  delicate  animal,  as  he  cannot  endure  warmth  in  any 
shape.  The  fogs  that  almost  constantly  envelop  the  islands  are  their 
protection,  and  they  enjoy  them  greatly.  If  the  sun  comes  out  for  a 
few  hours  only,  with  the  thermometer  not  above  fifty  degrees,  it  makes 
the  seals  so  uncomfortable  that  those  on  the  hauling-grounds  go  into  the 
water, and  the  others  manifest  their  discomfort  in  various  ways;  but  as 
soon  as  the  fog  comes  again  everything  is  lovely,  and  those  that  have  fled 
to  the  sea  return  to  their  former  places. 

"When  the  drive  has  been  started,  the  seals  are  stretched  out  for  a 
long  distance  on  the  path,  so  that  two  or  three  thousand  of  them  will 
make  a  column  half  a  mile  long.  When  they  show  signs  of  fatigue  they 
are  allowed  to  stop  to  cool,  but,  even  with  all  precautions,  some  of  them 
die  on  the  way,  as  can  be  seen  by  the  skeletons  along  the  track.  When 
they  have  reached  the  killing-grounds,  they  are  herded  together  for  scv- 


DRIVING    8KAI.8    OVBRI.AX1>. 


282 


THE   YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


IN  THE  ROOKERIES. 


283 


cr.il  hours,  and  sometimes  for  an  entire  day,  so  that  they  can  become 
thoroughly  cooled  off  before  slaughtering.  A  few  men  and  boys  watch 
them  to  prevent  their  straying,  and  they  remind  yon  of  herders  watching 
their  sheep. 

"  We  went  a  little  way  with  the  drive  to  see  how  it  was  managed,  and 
then  continued  onr  inspection  of  the  rookeries.  Some  of  these  are  quite 
near  the  village;  and  as  you  look  out  from  the  windows  of  the  principal 
house  of  the  Company  you  can  see  thousands  of  the  seals  of  various  ages, 
and  if  you  could  not  see,  on  account  of  the  fog,  you  would  be  sure  to  hear 
.them.  The  roaring  is  continuous,  on  account  of  the  quarrels  of  the  old 
ones.  It  is  a  pity  they  fight  so  much,  as  they  not  only  tear  and  kill  each 
other,  but  they  trample  a  good  many  of  the  young  pups,  and  roll  over 
them  in  their  struggles.  A  pup  seal  is  of  no  consequence  when  a  great 
fellow  weighing  three  or  four  hundred  pounds  has  rolled  over  him  two 
or  three  times,  and  crushed  him  as  flat  as  a  very  thin  pancake.  It  is  es- 
timated that  at  least  two  per  cent,  of  the  young  seals  are  killed  in  this 
way.  It  may  not  seem  a  very  large  percentage,  but  when  we  remember 


HUI.I.8    QUAUHKI.Ll.VG. 


that  about  four  hundred  thousand  seals  are  born  here  every  year  the  fig- 
ures mount  up  to  a  respectable  size. 

"  Two  old  bulls  were  perched  on  some  rocks,  and  stood  there  snarling, 
and  evidently  proposing  a  fight.     Each  was  daring  the  other  to  hit  the 


284  THE  YOUNG   NIMRODS. 

iirst  blow,  and  they  were  so  long  about  it  that  they  gave  us  a  chance 'to 
make  a  sketch  of  them.  It  is  a  curious  fact  that  they  can  handle  them- 
selves much  better  on  the  rocks  than  on  level  ground ;  on  the  rocks  they 
can  run  as  fast  as  a  man,  but  when  the  ground  is  smooth  he  can  easily 
get  away  from  them.  They  are  fond  of  getting  on  the  highest  rocks,  and 
the  most  of  their  fights  grow  out  of  the  selection  of  places,  and  the  real 
or  fancied  intrusions  the}'  make  on  each  other's  premises. 

"  The  agent  here  says  that  the  male  seals  are  much  more  attentive  to 
the  young  than  the  females  are.  The  latter  will  run  away  to  the  sea 
when  alarmed,  and  leave  the  pups  to  themselves,  but  the  bulls  mount 
guard  and  fight  desperately  for  the  protection  of  the  infants.  But  as  the 
little  fellows  grow  able  to  look  out  for  themselves,  the  bulls  are  less 
watchful,  and  by  the  end  of  the  season  they  consider  their  duty  over. 

"You  know  that  young  kittens  and  puppies  swim  the  iirst  time  they 
are  thrown  into  the  water,  and  so  do  the  young  of  nearly  all  quadrupeds. 
But  the  seal,  whose  home  is  in  the  water,  does  not  seem  to  have  an  in- 
stinct for  it,  and  his  first  attempt  to  swim  is  a  very  awkward  perform- 
ance. He  flounders  about  like  a  boy  who  is  learning  to  swim ;  and  if  he 
began  his  practice  anywhere  except  in  the  little  pools  and  eddies  where 
the  water  is  smooth,  he  would  run  a  great  risk  of  drowning.  They  perse- 
vere, however,  and  in  a  month  or  six  weeks  after  the  first  trial  they  are 
good  swimmers.  By  the  time  they  are  a  year  old  they  have  learned  the 
art  to  perfection.  They  go  away  from  the  island  in  October  and  Novem- 
ber, and  do  not  return  till  the  following  year;  and  if  they  did  not  have  a 
great  deal  of  practice  before  starting,  they  would  not  be  able  to  sustain 
themselves  through  the  winter. 

"  The  little  seals  are  very  playful,  and  they  like  to  get  together  in 
parties  of  a  hundred  or  more  for  a  good  frolic,  either  on  land  or  in  the  wa- 
ter. The  older  seals  are  very  graceful-  swimmers,  and  can  move  ancl  turn 
with  wonderful  rapidity.  In  swimming,  they  keep  their  bodies  quite  un- 
der water,  and  only  come  occasionally  to  the  surface.  They  run  or  swim 
races  through  the  surf,  and  sometimes  a  party  of  them  seem  to  be  playing 
tag,  and  entering  into  the  spirit  of  it  like  a  lot  of  boys  just  out  of  school. 

"When  they  go  away  in  the  autumn,  they  rarely  or  never  touch  land 
again  till  their  return  to  the  Pribylov  Islands.  They  are  found  two  or 
three  hundred  miles  at  sea,  and  it  is  thought  that  they  go  down  the  coast 
of  North  America  a  distance  of  two  or  three  thousand  miles,  or  to  the 
shores  of  Siberia ;  and  yet  they  never  forget  how  to  reach  these  islands, 
and  can  hold  their  course  to  them  as  directly  as  the  most  experienced 
ship-master  with  the  best  instruments  that  science  can  furnish. 


HOW   THE   SEALS  ARE    KILLED. 


285 


"  But  the  seals  have  had  time  to  cool,  and  now  we  will  see  how  they 
are  killed.  A  dozen  or  fifteen  men  attend  to  this  work,  and  they  have 
some  long,  heavy  clubs  that  require  strong  anus  to  wield  them.  They 
work  under  the  direction  of  an  overseer,  who  selects  the  seals  to  be 
slaughtered,  and  allows  all  those  that  are  too  young,  or  are  not  in  good 
condition,  to  .escape.  From  fifty  to  a  hundred  seals  are  taken  from  the 
herd  and  driven  a  little  to  one  side,  and  then  the  men  surround  them 
and  make  them  huddle  into  a  heap  with  their  heads  in  the  air.  A  sin- 
gle well-directed  blow  finishes  the  seal,  as  it  crushes  the  skull  and  kills 
him  instantly. 

"  When  three  or  four  hundred  have  been  killed,  the  work  is  stopped 
so  that  the  skins  may  be  removed.  This  must  be  done  very  promptly, 


KILLING    FUR-SKALS. 


as  the  bodies  of  the  animals  begin  to  decay  in  a  few  hours,  especially  if 
the  weather  is  at  all  warm,  and  the  least  decay  is  an  injury  to  the  skin. 

"  The  men,  from  long  practice,  are  very  expert  at  skinning  seals,  and 
some  of  them  will  remove  a  pelt  from  the  body  of  a  medium-sized  animal 
inside  of  two  minutes.  There  are  only  a  few  who  can  do  this,  and  the 


286 


THE   YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


— 


average  time  required  is  under  five  minutes,  so  that  one  man  can  easily 

skin  a  dozen  seals  in  an  hour. 
"After  the  skin  is  taken 
off  it  is  carried  to  the  salt- 
houses,  where  it  is  spread  out 
on  a  bench,  with  the  fleshy 
side  uppermost,  and  liberally 
covered  with  salt.  It  lies 
in  this  condition  for  ten  or 
twelve  days,  and  is  then  suf- 
ficiently pickled  to  be  ready 
for  bundling.  It  has  anoth- 
er sprinkling  of  salt  before 
it  is  folded  up;  and  as  it  is 
not  desirable  to  be  economi- 
cal in  the  use  of  the  preserv- 
ative article,  the  cost  of  salt 
is  a  considerable  item  in  the 
Company's  expenses. 

"The  skins  go   to  Lon- 
don as  the  best  fur  market 

of  the  world,  and  are  sold  there  just  as  they  have  left  the  islands.     The 

dressing  of  the  skins  is  a  separate  business  that  the  Alaska  Commercial 

Company  does  not  trouble  itself  with,  being  quite  content  to  dispuse  of 

the  fur  in  its  raw  state.     The  rough  skins  sell 

for  about  ten  dollars  each ;  and  when  dressed 

and  finished  they  are  worth  from  twenty  dol- 
lars upward.     The  long  hair  is  pulled  out,  so 

as  to  leave  only  the  short,  thick  fur,  and  the 

whole  surface  is  dyed,  to  give  it  the  proper 

color  and  make  it  even  throughout.     Nearly 

every  fur-dresser  has  secret  processes  of  his 

own  that  he  protects  with  the  greatest  care, 

and  they  are   constantly  endeavoring   to  im- 
prove on  the  work  of  their  rivals. 

"  The  flesh  of  the  seals  is  a  prime  article  of 

food  among  the  natives ;  they  eat  it  fresh  in 

summer,  and  dry  or  salt  it  for  winter.     The 

fat  is  secured  by  means  of  trj'-pots,  and  the 

annual  collection   of  this   article  is   no  small       THE  SKIN  AFTEK  REMOVAL. 


SK.I3XIXG    A    SEAL. 


FAREWELL  TO   ALASKA. 


281 


matter.  The  smell  of  the  killing-grounds  is  not  particularly  agreeable, 
and  therefore  we  will  not  stay  there  any  longer  than  is  necessary  to  see 
how  the  operation  of  securing  the  skin  is  performed." 


vr  ? 
COAST   OF    ALASKA    NEAU    ST.  PAUL'S    ISLAND. 


288  THE   YOUNG  KIMRODS. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

AMONG   THE  WHALES.— INCIDENTS  OF  WHALE-FISHING. 

AS  soon  as  the  steamer  had  landed  the  supplies  brought  from  San 
Francisco,  and  taken  on  board  the  skins  that  were  ready  for  trans- 
portation to  market,  she  was  announced  to  start  on  the  return  journey. 
On  her  southerly  voyage  she  did  not  touch  at  Sitka,  but  proceeded  direct- 
ly to  San  Francisco.  The  winds  favored  her,  and  in  far  less  time  than 
she  had  consumed  in  going  to  the  North  she  was  entering  the  Golden 
Gate. 

The  voyage  promised  at  first  to  be  a  monotonous  one,  but  the  promise 
was  not  kept. 

One  day,  while  they  were  loitering  around  the  ship,  and  endeavoring 
to  while  away  the  time,  our  friends  were  startled  by  a  report  of  whales  in 
sight.  They  ran  to  see  the  monsters  of  the  ocean,  and  sure  enough  there 
they  were. 

There  were  at  least  a  dozen  whales  visible  not  more  than  a  mile  away. 
and  right  in  the  track  of  the  steamer.  As  they  drew  near,  the  boys  could 
distinctly  make  out  the  forms  of  the  huge  fellows  ploughing  through  the 
water,  and  both  Harry  and  George  wished  they  could  stop  and  have  a 
day's  sport  in  whale-fishing.  They  expressed  their  wish  to  the  captain, 
who  answered  that  possibly  they  might  encounter  a  whale-ship ;  and,  if 
so,  he  would  certainly  stop  long  enough  for  them  to  see  something  of  the 
business  of  catching  the  largest  game  in  the  world. 

Their  wish  was  gratified  before  the  day  was  over;  for  about  an  hour 
after  passing  this  school  they  sighted  a  ship  which  the  captain  at  once 
pronounced  to  be  the  Neptune,  commanded  by  an  old  friend  of  his,  Cap- 
tain Nordhoff.  Soon  after  discovering  the  ship,  they  saw  that  her  boats 
were  out,  and  having  lively  work  in  a  school  of  whales. 

The  steamer's  course  was  changed,  and  a  moment  later  another  ship 
came  into  view,  about  five  miles  farther  on  than  the  Neptune.  It  was 
soon  ascertained  that  her  boats  were  out,  and  the  promise  of  an  interest- 
ing scene  increased  rapidly. 


AMONG  THE   WHALKS. 


289 


Now  the  school  was  distinctly  visible ;  there  were  half  a  dozen  whales 
quite  close  together,  and  three  boats  were  among  them,  with  the  evident 
intention  of  making  as  much  havoc  as  possible.  One  was  fast  to  a  whale 
that  had  "sounded,"  or  gone  down  toward  the  bottom  and  drawn  the  line 
after  him,  and  the  six  men  in  the  boat  were  all  occupied  in  tending  the 
line,  to  see  that  he  did  not  take  out  too  much  of  it.  Another  boat  had 
just  struck  a  whale  that  was  making  off  like  a  race-horse,  and  towing  his 
tormentors  as  though  it  was  fun  for  him  to  exercise  his  strength  in  that 
way ;  while  the  third  boat,  which  came  from  the  distant  ship,  was  furling 
its  sail  and  getting  ready  for  work.  The  men  were  at  the  oars,  and  there 
was  a  good  prospect  that  within  the  next  live  minutes  another  whale 
would  feel  the  prick  of  the  harpoon. 

The  captain  took  the  boys  with  him  on  the  bridge  of  the  steamer,  so 
that  they  could  have  the  best  possible  view  of  the  operations  of  the  Nim- 
rods  of  the  sea;  and  while  they  stood  there  he  explained  to  them  the 


IX    A    SCHOOL    OF    WHAf.ES. 


peculiarities  of  the  whale-h'shery,  and  told  them  some  of  his  personal  ex- 
periences in  the  business.    The  captain  was  a  native  of  New  Bedford,  and 

19 


290 


THE   YOUNG   NIMRODS. 


A    WHALEMAN   AND    HIS    IMPLEMENTS. 


his  first  years  at  sea  were  passed  on  a  whale-ship.  He  had  risen  to  the 
command  of  the  vessel  on  which  he  first  sailed  as  foremast-hand,  and  at 
one  time  he  hoped  to  continue  a  whaleman  till  he  was  able  to  retire  with 
a  comfortable  fortune. 

"  It's  the  finest  sport  in  the  world,"  said  he,  "  to  chase  a  full-grown 
whale  and  feel  that  you  are  to  master  him.  It's  intelligence  against 
strength ;  and  not  altogether  that  either,  for  the  whale  has  a  good  deal 
of  intelligence  in  addition  to  his  strength.  You  must  exercise  all  your 
powers  of  reason,  and  even  then  he  will  sometimes  get  the  best  of  you. 

"  Your  weapons  are  not  numerous,  but  they  should  be  of  the  best 
quality.  Your  lances  must  be  of  the  best  steel,  so  as  to  have  a  fine  cut- 
ting edge ;  and  your  harpoons,  with  steel  heads  that  hook  under  the  skin 
of  the  whale  and  stay  there,  should  have  the  softest  and  toughest  of  iron 
for  their  shanks,  so  that  they  will  bend  and  lie  flat  against  his  sides  with- 
out breaking.  The  line  attached  to  the  harpoon  is  of  the  best  Manila- 
hemp  that  can  be  procured,  and  combines  strength  with  compactness. 

"  When  I  first  went  to  sea,"  he  continued,  "  we  relied  altogether  on 
the  old-fashioned  harpoon  and  lance  for  killing  our  prey ;  but  since  gun- 


THE   BOMB-LANCE.  291 

powder  came  into  general  use  there  is  no  reason  why  the  whales  should 
escape  its  benefits,  and  they  haven't.  Bomb-lances  have  been  invented 
which  throw  a  bomb-shell  into  the  whale's  vitals  and  explode  it  there. 
Tt  is  a  most  deadly  weapon,  as  it  performs  a  work  that  was  impossible 
for  the  old  lance." 

One  of  the  boys  wished  to  know  how  it  was  made,  and  the  captain 
described  it  to  them. 

"The  first  invention  of  that  sort,"  said  he,  "was  a  small  cannon  in 
the  bows  of  the  boat  to  shoot  the  harpoon  into  the  whale  from  a  greater 
distance,  and  with  more  force  than  was  possible  by  hand.  A  few  feet 
of  chain  were  attached  to  the  harpoon  and  connected  with  the  line,  so 
that  the  latter  should  not  be  injured,  and  the  theory  of  the  inventor 
was  an  excellent  one;  but  he  did  not  allow  for  the  difficulty  of  aiming 
the  cannon  in  a  boat  that  was  constantly  bobbing  up  and  down  on 
the  waves,  and  never  staying  quiet  for  an  instant.  The  scheme  didn't 
work. 

"  The  next  one  was  for  shooting  the  harpoon,  and  afterward  the  lance, 


IE    YOUNG    HARrOONKR. 


from  a  gun  held  to  the  shoulder  like  an  ordinary  rifle.  This  worked 
fairly,  but  it  was  not  of  any  great  account,  and  was  soon  set  aside  by  the 
bomb  lance.  The  latter  weapon  has  a  large-bored  gun-barrel  set  on  the 
shaft  of  the  harpoon,  and  parallel  with  it.  The  barrel  carries  an  explosive 


292  THE  YOUNG   NIMKODS. 

shell  instead  of  a  solid  ball,  and  when  the  harpoon  is  thrown  into  a  whale 
and  the  line  is  tightened,  the  gun  is  discharged. 

"  The  shell  goes  directly  into  the  body  of  the  whale,  and  generally  ex- 
plodes in  his  vitals.  Since  this  weapon  was  invented,  many  a  whale  has 
been  killed  by  it,  and  it  has  been  adopted  by  nearly  all  the  whalemen 
now  in  the  business.  There  is  another  kind  of  gun  that  throws  a  bomb 
into  the  whale  without  the  harpoon,  but  it  is  not  intended  for  use  till  the 
boat  has  made  fast  to  its  game.  There,  there,  they're  using  it  now  !  look 
at  'em !" 

As  he  spoke,  there  was  a  little  puff  of  smoke  from  one  of  the  boats, 
followed  by  the  report  of  the  gun.  Evidently  the  whale  was  severely 
hurt,  as  he  threw  his  great  body  half  out  of  water,  and  lashed  about  furi- 
ously with  his  tail. 

"  He's  got  it,"  said  the  captain.  "  He's  in  his  flurry  now,  and  as  good 
as  dead.  When  the  whale  lashes  about  in  that  way,  he  is  in  his  death 
struggles,  and  we  call  it  flurry. 

"  That's  the  time  we  have  to  look  out  for  him,  as  he  is  likely  to  do 
some  damage  if  you  give  him  half  a  chance.  I've  known  a  whale  to 
smash  a  boat  all  to  kindling-wood  after  he  had  got  his  death-blow.  Some- 
times they  throw  themselves  clean  out  of  water,  and  in  falling  come  across 
a  boat,  so  that  she  is  smashed  instantly.  The  men  get  away  the  best  way 
they  can,  and  are  picked  up  by  the  other  boats,  and  it  occasionally  hap- 
pens that  some  of  them  are  killed.  The  most  dangerous  time  with  a 
whale  is  when  he's  in  his  flurry,  but  the  blessing  about  it  is  that  it  doesn't 
generally  last  long." 

As  if  to  illustrate  what  the  captain  was  saying,  the  whale  brought  his 
tail  down  in  such  a  way  as  to  smash  the  boat  from  which  the  bomb  had 
been  fired.  All  the  men  managed  to  escape,  some  by  swimming,  and 
others  by  clinging  to  the  fragments  of  the  boat.  In  a  few  minutes  the 
whale  lay  quite  dead  on  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  gave  practical  evi- 
dence of  the  power  of  the  bomb-lance  when  properly  handled. 

A  little  flag  was  stuck  in  the  whale,  to  indicate  that  he  was  dead,  and 
also  to  avoid  any  dispute  as  to  his  ownership.  Sometimes  when  the  boats 
of  different  ships  are  in  a  school,  a  question  arises  about  the  possession  of 
a  prize,  and  there  have  been  quarrels  in  consequence.  The  flag  is  marked 
so  as  to  indicate  to  what  ship  it  belongs,  and  consequently  a  mistake  is 
not  likely  to  occur  when  this  precaution  has  been  taken.  Another  boat 
came  from  the  ship  and  took  the  whale  in  tow,  and  in  due  time  he  was 
brought  along-side. 

"  They  are  starting  the  try-works  for  him,"  said  the  captain,  as  he  saw 


INCIDENTS  OF  THE  WHALE-FISHERY. 


294 


THE  YOUNG  NIMRODS. 


a  smoke  rising  from  the  deck  of  the  Neptune.  "  They  have  all  they  want 
to  do  now,  as  they'll  have  two  or  three  whales  to  cut  up  and  try  out  as 
fast  as  they  can  attend  to  them." 

"How  do  they  hoist  the  whale  on  board?"  one  of  the  boys  asked. 
"  I  should  think  they  would  need  a  steam-engine  to  do  it,  and  a  strong 
one  too." 

The  captain  laughed,  and  said  the  whale  was  not  taken  on  board  at 
all.  He  looked  through  his  glass  at  the  ship,  and  then  exclaimed, 


THE    WHALE    IN    TOW. 


"They've  got  one  along-side  now,  and  are  cutting  him  in.  We'll  see 
how  it  is  done." 

As  they  approached  the  Neptune,  the  captain  told  the  boys  how  the 
whalemen  performed  the  operation  of  "cutting  in." 

"  They  get  him  along-side,  first,"  said  he,  "  with  his  eye  about  opposite 
the  gangway.  There  they  have  a  very  large  tackle-block,  with  a  three- 
inch  Manila -rope  running  through  it.  There  are  two  of  these  blocks 
quite  independent  of  each  other,  the  object  being  for  one  of  them  to  be 
lowered  while  the  other  is  coming  in,  and  thus  a  fresh  grip  can  be  taken 
when  a  slice  has  come  on  board. 

"  They  begin  by  cutting  with  a  long-handled  spade  that  is  operated 
by  one  of  the  mates,  who  stands  on  a  little  staging  slung  over  the  side  of 
the  ship.  When  they  have  started  enough  to  give  holding -ground  for 
the  hook,  a  sailor  goes  down  over  the  side  and  inserts  it  in  the  place 
where  the  whale's  eye  was.  lie  has  a  dangerous  business  before  him,  as 
he  has  the  great  block  to  handle,  and  may  be  caught  between  it  and  the 
side  of  the  ship,  or  he  may  slip  from  the  whale  and  get  a  bite  from  a 


STRIPPING   A   WHALE. 


295 


shark.  There  are  always  plenty  of  these  thieves  about  ready  to  feed  on 
the  whale  as  soon  as  his  jacket  is  off,  and  sometimes  they  don't  wait  for 
that  before  they  begin.  The  man  removes  his  boots  before  going  down, 
and  has  nothing  on  his  feet  but  a  pair  of  very  thick  woollen  stockings. 
With  his  boots  he  could  not  hold  on  a  moment,  but  the  stockings  catch 
on  the  skin  of  the  whale,  and  enable  him  to  cling  there. 

"All  hands  are  hold  of  the  tackle-rope;  and  when  the  spades  have  cut 
the  strip  and  fairly  started  it,  the  order  is  given  to  haul  away.  The  great 
block  goes  upward,  the  spades  keep  on  cutting,  and  in  a  few  minutes  the 
strip,  or  'blanket,'  as  it  is  called,  has  gone  toward  the  sky  till  it  is  two- 
thirds  the  height  of  the  main-mast.  Then  the  second  tackle  is  fastened 
in  near  the  level  of  the  deck,  and  when  it  is  all  secure  the  blanket  is  cut 
through  above  it,  and  swung  in  till  it  is  over  the  hatch  that  leads  to  the 
blubber-room. 

"Then  the  piece  is  lowered  and  dropped  into  the  blubber-room,  where 


'CUTTING  IN"  A  WHALE. 


a  man  stows  it  away,  and  makes  the  pieces  fit  as  closely  as  he  can.     By 
the  time  the  second  tackle  is  up  the  first  is  ready  to  relieve  it,  and  so  they 


296  THE    YOUNG  NIMRODS. 

go  on  till  the  whole  covering  of  the  whale  has  been  stripped  off  from  his 
eye  to  his  tail.  The  cut  is  made  in  a  spiral  form,  and  the  body  of  the 
whale  turns  over  and  over  as  the  blanket  is  unrolled.  If  it  is  a  sperm- 
whale,  the  head  is  detached  and  secured,  as  it  contains  a  very  large  amount 
of  the  finest  oil." 

The  boys  opened  their  eyes  in  astonishment  when  the  captain  told 
them  that  the  oil  from  the  head  of  a  sperm-whale  was  dipped  out  with 
a  bucket,  and  sometimes  amounted  to  twenty  barrels  or  more. 

"Did  you  say  twenty  barrels?"  Harry  asked,  as  if  he  could  hardly 
believe  his  ears. 

"  Yes,"  was  the  reply,  "  twenty  barrels  and  more.  I  have  known  the 
head  of  a  sperm-whale  to  yield  twenty -three  barrels  of  spermaceti,  the 
most  valuable  oil  that  the  whale  produces;  and  I  have  heard  of  one  that 
gave  twent}* -seven  barrels,  but  I  didn't  see  him  myself." 

By  this  time  the  steamer  was  along-side  the  ship,  and  while  the  two 
captains  were  holding  a  conversation,  the  boys  were  watching  the  process 
of  cutting  in.  They  could  also  look  down  on  the  deck  of  the  Neptune, 
and  see  the  try-pots,  where  the  rich  blubber  or  fat  of  the  whale  was  to  be 
reduced  to  oil.  They  were  simmering  slowly  over  the  remains  of  a  pre- 
vious catch,  and  were  not  in  full  action,  as  everybody  except  the  cook  and 
the  man  at  the  wheel  was  occupied  with  the  work  of  securing  the  capt- 
ures of  the  day. 

When  the  conversation  was  ended  the  steamer  moved  on  and  resumed 
her  course.  A  few  miles'to  the  southward  a  dense  smoke  was  seen  rising 
from  a  ship.  The  bo}Ts  thought  at  first  it  was  a  steamer,  but  were  soon 
undeceived,  as  the  captain  told  them  it  was  a  ship  engaged  in  "  trying 
out." 

"A  whale  furnishes  the  fuel  for  cooking  him,"  said  the  captain,  "ex- 
cept that  we  have  to  use  a  little  wood  for  starting  the  first  fire.  The 
scraps  make  excellent  fuel,  and  a  whale  makes  more  than  enough  for 
trying  him  out.  When  we  have  done  with  a  whale  we  save  scraps  for 
the  second  starting,  and  therefore  we  never  need  use. any  wood  after  the 
first  capture. 

"We  have  great  pots  or  kettles  set  in  brickwork  on  the  deck,  with 
little  furnaces  beneath  where  the  fires  are  built.  The  blubber  is  passed 
up  from  the  blubber-room,  and  cut  into  thin  slices,  so  that  the  oil  can 
readily  free  itself.  Some  of  the  men  watch  the  fires,  while  one  of  the 
officers  keeps  an  eye  on  the  oil  to  see  that  it  is  secured  when  it  is  of  the 
proper  color.  The  value  of  the  oil  depends  greatly  upon  this  color,  and 
the  men  in  charge  of  the  work  cannot  be  too  careful. 


A  WHALEMAN'S  WORK. 


297 


TltYING    OUT. 


298. 


THE  YOUNG  NIMKODS. 


"While  they  are  engaged-in  trying  out,  the  men  have  little  time  for 
anything  else.  The  main-sail  is  furled  and  the  top-sails  reefed,  and  the 
ship  drifts  and  floats  pretty  much  as  she  likes.  It  is  hard  work,  and  ev- 
erybody is  glad  when  it  is  over.  There  is  not  an  idle  person  on  board, 
and  one  of  the  busiest  of  the  lot  is  the  cooper.  It  is  his  duty  to  get  the 
casks  ready  for  the  oil,  and  to  head  them  up  when  they  have  been  prop- 
erly filled ;  and  when  his  day's  work  is  done  there  isn't  a  man  more  ready 
to  go  to  sleep  than  the  cooper." 


CARCASS    OF    A    WHALE. 


Harry  inquired  how  many  barrels  of  oil  they  usually  obtained  from  a 
whale. 

"I  can't  answer  that  question  without  an  explanation,"  replied  the 
captain.  "Some  kinds  of  whales  produce  more  than  others,  and  then  in 
a  school  of  one  kind  you  find  them  of  different  sizes. 

"Here  are  some  of  the  figures  about  the  yield  of  oil  in  whales.  I 
have  taken  a  sperm-whale  myself  that  yielded  one  hundred  and  nine  bar- 
rels, but  he  was  not  as  large  as  another  that  was  taken  by  a  ship  I  sailed 
in  before  I  was  captain.  That  one  gave  one  hundred  and  thirteen  bar- 


THE   QUANTITY  OF  OIL  IN  A   WHALE.  299 

rels,  and  he  smashed  two  boats  and  fought  us  four  hours  before  we  suc- 
ceeded in  killing  him. 

"  The  ship  James  Arnold,  of  New  Bedford,  took  in  one  season  eight 
whales,  every  one  of  which  made  more  than  one  hundred  barrels ;  the 
largest  of  them  gave  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven  of  as  good  oil  as  you 
would  wish  to  see.  At  the  same  time  and  on  the  same  ground  another 
ship  killed  ten  sperm-whales,  and  the  whole  lot  of  them  made  eleven 
hundred  and  forty  barrels.  The  largest  I  ever  heard  of  was  a  monster 
that  gave  one  hundred  and  forty-five  barrels,  and  he  was  probably  not 
far  from  a  hundred  feet  long,. though  he  wasn't  measured. 

"  The  whale-fishery  has  greatly  declined  in  the  past  twenty  years,  ow- 
ing to  the  destruction  of  the  whales  and  the  difficulty  of  catching  the  few 
that  remain.  The  discovery  of  petroleum  reduced  the  price  of  oil  so  that 
the  business  became  unprofitable,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  it  ever  revives." 

The  steward's  bell  announcing  dinner  brought  the  conversation  to  an 
end.  When  the  boys  returned  to  the  deck  they  saw  a  ship  under  full 
sail  a  little  ahead  of  them,  and  not  far  off  was  the  carcass  of  a  whale  that 
was  furnishing  a  feast  for  the  sharks  and  sea-birds.  The  water  was  alive 
with  sharks,  while  the  birds  swept  round  and  round,  watching  their  op- 
portunities for  satisfying  their  appetites,  and  keeping  well  out  of  reach  of 
their  companions  at  the  feast.  It  was  a  scene  of  life  on  the  ocean  wave, 
and  the  boys  watched  it  intently  till  the  rapidly  increasing  distance  left 
the  dead  whale  and  his  devourers  behind  them  and  out  of  sight.  The 
night  clouds  fell,  and  the  steamer  ploughed  steadily  onward.  In  the 
morning  neither  whales  nor  whalemen  were  visible,  and  the  rest  of  the 
voyage  to  San  Francisco  was  without  incident  worthy  of  mention. 


THE    END. 


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Interesting  Books  for  Soys. 


FRED  MARKIIAM  IN  RUSSIA ;  or,  The  Boy  Travellers  in  the  Land 
of  the  Czar.  By  W.  H.  G.  KINGSTON.  Illustrated.  Small  4to,  Cloth, 
75  cents. 

SELF-MADE  MEN.  By  CHARLES  C.  B.  SEYMOUR.  Many  Portraits. 
12mo,  Cloth,  $1  75. 

THE  LIFE  AND  SURPRISING  ADVENTURES  OF  ROBINSON 
CRUSOE,  of  York,  Mariner ;  with  a  Biographical  Account  of  DE- 
FOE. Illustrated  by  Adams.  Complete  Edition.  12mo,  Cloth,  $1  00. 

THE  SWISS  FAMILY  ROBINSON;  or,  Adventures  of  a  Father  and 
Mother  and  Four  Sons  on  a  Desert  Island.  Illustrated.  2  vols., 
18mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

THE  SWISS  FAMILY  ROBINSON  — Continued :  being  a  Sequel  to 
the  Foregoing.  2  vols.,  18mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

DOGS  AND  THEIR  DOINGS.  By  Rev.  F.  O.  MORRIS,  B.A.  Illus- 
trated. Square  8vo,  Cloth,  Gilt  Sides,  $1  75. 

TALES  FROM  THE  ODYSSEY  FOR  BOYS  AND  GIRLS.  By 
C.  M.  B.  32mo,  Paper,  25  cents. 

THE  ADVENTURES  OF  REUBEN  DAVIDGER;  Seventeen  Years 
and  Four  Months  Captive  among  the  Dyaks  of  Borneo.  By  J. 
GREENWOOD.  8vo,  Cloth,  $1  25;  4to,  Paper,  15  cents. 

CAST  UP  BY  THE  SEA;  or,  The  Adventures  of  Ned  Grey.  By  Sir 
SAMUEL  W.  BAKER,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  F.R.G.S.  Illustrated.  12mo,  Cloth, 
$1  25. 

WILD  SPORTS  OF  THE  WORLD.  A  Book  of  Natural  History  and 
Adventure.  By  JAMES  GREENWOOD.  Illustrated.  Grown  8 vo, Cloth, 

$2  50. 

HOMES  WITHOUT  HANDS  :  Being  a  Description  of  the  Habitations 
of  Animals,  classed  according  to  their  Principle  of  Construction. 
By  the  Rev.  J.  G.  WOOD,  M.A.,  F.L.S.  With  about  140  Illustrations, 
engraved  on  wood  by  G.  Pearson,  from  Original  Designs  made  by 
F.  W.  Keyl  and  E.  A.  Smith,  under  the  Author's  Superintendence. 
8vo,  Cloth,  $4  50 ;  Sheep,  $5  00  ;  Roan,  $5  00 ;  Half  Calf,  $6  75. 

THE  ILLUSTRATED  NATURAL  HISTORY.  By  the  Rev.  J.  G. 
WOOD,  M. A.,  F.L.S.  With  450  Engravings.  12rao,  Cloth,  fl  05. 


PUBLISHED  BY  HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  NEW  YORK. 

A  ny  of  the  above  works  tent  by  mail,  postage  prepaid,  to  any  part  of  the  United  States,  on  receipt  of 
the  price. 


